


Shards of Glass Part III

by GWhite, Mini_Goat, MRKRZHRSE



Series: Shards [3]
Category: JAG (TV 1995), NCIS, Stargate SG-1
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Friendship, Mission Fic, Murder Mystery, Wedding Fluff, Wedding Planning
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-19
Updated: 2020-12-21
Packaged: 2021-03-09 18:09:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 35,458
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27630506
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GWhite/pseuds/GWhite, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mini_Goat/pseuds/Mini_Goat, https://archiveofourown.org/users/MRKRZHRSE/pseuds/MRKRZHRSE
Summary: Jack beat the charges and George pulled pretty hard on some strings to make things right but SG-1 has one final task to undertake before anyone can have happily ever after.
Relationships: Samantha "Sam" Carter/Jack O'Neill
Series: Shards [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1927477
Comments: 124
Kudos: 109





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> In our last story Jack was cleared of all charges albeit conditionally regarding conduct unbecoming. Jack expects to be quietly shuffled off to retirement but the powers that be have other plans for the leader of SG-1. Is he ready for what's coming? Is he ready to face his soon to be father in law who doesn't even know what happened yet?

“Have a seat, Jack.” Hammond told him as Jack walked into his former’s boss’ office. Jack technically still was not reinstated. Immediately after the hearing was adjourned, he’d been released and sent home, as had Sam. Jack smiled a little about their first night at home with their little family. Somehow, with everything happening with the case, his SGC colleagues had cleaned out his cluttered guest room, painted and set up a nursery for Nugget. Sam had still been in no shape to indulge in anything more than heavy petting but they had fallen asleep tangled in each other’s arms anyway. At least until Gracie woke them up at oh three hundred for her first breakfast.

“Sir?” Jack asked him as he sat. He was under the impression he was now retired though Hammond had not said anything either way. He had come in with Sam this morning anyway, leaving the baby safe at home with her nanny. If nothing else, he figured he had paperwork to file but that wasn’t something he needed to see Hammond for.

Leaning back in his chair almost absently, George started to talk. “Kirkja was your deciding vote. He’s a real stickler to the letter of the law regardless of how things look. Hickerson took a bit of persuading.” Hammond leaned forward in his chair, placing his elbows on his desk. “Jack, I have a proposal for you.”

“I was under the impression I was being forced to retire, sir.”

A corner of Hammond’s mouth quirked up. “Not quite yet. I have a job for you and a request.”

“Oh?” What now, Jack thought. He could hear big honkin klaxons going off in his head.

“I want this hole plugged, son, and I’m willing to call in whoever you need to help me do it. We know that Kinsey is involved in this somehow. And we know that this isn’t the first time Kinsey has meddled, and I doubt it will be the last.”

“You’re probably right, sir.”

“At any rate, we haven’t heard the last of this so I want what’s left of the Trust quashed.”

“Sir, we took down the Trust years ago.”

“Apparently all we got was a slimy tentacle. I have it on good authority that Bauer is heading it up currently at Kinsey’s behest. He’s been playing the ‘by the book’ routine to throw off any suspicions that he’d be mixed up in any of it but we have intel that he had his fingers in it all along.”

Jack frowned. “Is Sam in danger?”

George knew what Jack was really asking was: is his daughter in danger. Sam could take care of herself. As for Janet Grace… well… that has been handled as well. “Steps have been taken to ensure she is not.”

Jack let out a slow sigh. “All right. I’m just spinning my wheels right now anyway. What have you got?”

_Two Weeks ago…_

“Sir, have you got a moment?” Harm said, knocking on Hammond’s door after checking with Sergeant Harriman if he was free.

“What can I do for you, son?” Hammond asked him, looking up from the report he was reading.

“I’m not sure how much you have talked to Colonel O’Neill about the current situation but I think I have some information that needs to hit your ears first.”

“Oh?” Hammond said with interest, the harsh white lights of his office making his bare head gleam slightly.

“Sir… are you familiar with an operation called the Trust?”

Hammond looked at him and frowned a little. “Close the door, Commander Rabb.” He told the tall younger man.

_Back in the present…_

“So, Bauer is up to his eyeballs. Somehow I’m not surprised. Sam was so glad I was home she didn’t even chew my ass out for the crap I said to her before I left.” Referring to his little jaunt with black ops to hobble Kinesy the last time.

“Oh?”

Jack waved him off though. He really didn’t want to relive the argument he and Sam had about his bad attitude when Bauer ended up as CO at SGC a few years back. He didn’t want her out in the field with that maniac running things and told her so. Bauer had almost gotten Teal’c killed trying to steal Naquadah from the Goa’uld. The last thing Jack had wanted was to have to worry about Sam while he tried to get Hammond off the hook. The vendetta against his team was pretty personal.

The fight they had that night had almost landed them in the situation they were in currently. Jack suppressed a rather foolish grin at the thought of making love to his now fiancé. 

“Be that as it may, this needs to be plugged.” Clearing his throat, Hammond took a long look at Jack which caused Jack to brace himself for the next piece of news. This had to be big, judging by the way Hammond was looking at Jack. “The Joint Chiefs want to add a new division entitled Homeworld Security.”

“Sounds pretentious.” Jack quipped.

“They want me to head it.”

“Better you than me, sir.” Jack said with amusement. He supposed things were shaping up that he’d take this one last mission then be forced out. Jack was fine with that. 

“There is still the matter of who will head up the SGC once I leave, son.”

“I’m sure you will find someone competent, sir.”

“I already have.” Hammond said to him smugly.

Jack went very still. He couldn’t possibly be serious.

Hammond looked at Jack expectantly.

Crap. He was serious. “Sir… with all due respect after what happened, I’d assumed this was my last assignment and then I was out for good.”

Hammond however gave Jack a bit of a sly smile. “Much to, I am certain, your immeasurable disappointment, Jack, no. Not only does the Air Force still want you… they want you here.”

Jack shrugged and pretended not to understand. “They already have me here.”

George chuckled. “No, Jack. In my position.”

Jack sighed. “Sir, with all due respect… are they _nuts_?!”

Hammond just chuckled though. “Think it over. Talk to your team about it, but the offer is very serious, Jack. They know I was grooming you all along and they want you in the chair when I move upward. I’m sure you could use a little more money now that you have a baby to provide for.” He’d have said now that Jack was a father again had the subject of his son not been such a painful topic. “Why don’t you go find your team, Jack?”.

Realizing he was being dismissed, Jack’s shoulders drooped as he got up.

“Oh, and one last thing, Jack…”

“Sir?”

“You and Sam will need to get married before her maternity leave is over if you take the advancement.”

“Right.” Jack’s mouth firmed as he walked out.

* * *

Jack sat with his elbows on his desk and rubbed his face, his expression midway between frustration and panic. Sam was not going to like this at all. He didn’t care about a promotion, but he knew he had no choice in either of the two matters Hammond had discussed with him. First of all, they had to take out the bad guys, and he didn’t have a lot of time to do it. He was going to need SG-1, Maybourne, and all the help he could get. He had a call to make, then he had to find his team. The other matter can wait a few more minutes.

He picked up the phone and dialed a number from memory. “Hey, Gunny.”

* * *

“Hello, Campers!” Jack said, finding SG-1 congregated in Daniel’s lab.

“Well, Jack, am I talking to a newly retired USAF colonel?” Sam asked. They both assumed that was the reason General Hammond had called Jack to his office. Frankly, neither one of them could see any other outcome, even if Jack had not been found not guilty.

Sam wasn’t expecting his “Not exactly,” as he leaned against the wall.

“What does that mean, Jack?” Daniel asked, leaning forward in the chair he was sitting in. “Are you back on SG-1? Wouldn’t they let you retire?”

Jack bit the inside of his jaw. He really didn’t want to do this. He wanted to take Sam and go home to their daughter. He would be more than happy to just live his life with Sam and raise their daughter together. The job didn’t matter to him, but he knew that he wouldn’t have the life he wanted if Kinsey and his buddies were still around. “The General had a proposal of sorts, but I need the three of you to agree to the idea.”

“Sir?”

Jack took a breath. “Here’s the deal. General Hammond is leaving the SGC and is going to head up a new department. They’re calling it Homeworld Security.” He paused, giving them time to absorb that the man who’d been their CO, mentor, and friend, was leaving. 

“O’Neill, are we in danger of having General Bauer return?” Teal’c asked, putting words to their first fear.

“No, it’s worse than that.” Jack replied, looking down.

Daniel stood abruptly and paced the small room, running his fingers through his hair. “What do you mean worse? Kinsey’s behind this, isn’t he?” 

‘Umm, no, Daniel. It isn’t Kinsey. I think General Hammond is behind this one, and apparently Hayes is on board.” 

Sam had a sinking feeling she knew what was coming, or at least part of it. She met Jack’s eyes and raised a brow. Jack answered by raising a brow of his own. Sam said, “You’re kidding?” incredulously, then, when Jack didn’t respond, “So, not kidding.”

“Not kidding? He hasn’t said anything yet.” Daniel huffed then stopped pacing. “Okay, Jack. Who is it?”

“Me... with a promotion. Brigadier General Jack O’Neill.” He paused, his expression a tad bemused. “General Hammond says the job is mine if I want it. But it comes with conditions.” Jack had to smile at Daniel’s gaping mouth. “You’re gonna catch flies, Daniel.”

Sam touched Jack’s arm, redirecting his focus from goading Daniel. “What are the conditions, sir?”

Jack took her hand, smiling at her, and kissing her knuckles. “First, we have to get married before your maternity leave is up, but we’re good on that.” He didn’t release Sam’s hand as he looked each of his teammates directly before saying out loud one of his biggest misgivings about the new job. “Sam, guys, I’ve spent my whole life sticking it to the man. I’m not sure I can be the man, or if I even want to be the man.”

“Nobody knows better than you do about how the SGC should be run, Jack.” Daniel pitched in.

“Besides, if you don’t, we might get someone worse, sir.” Sam said, then bit her lip as Jack stared at her. “Umm, that didn't come out right.”

Jack was secretly amused but gave her an injured look.

“You can do anything you want,” Daniel said into the silence.

“Yes, O’Neill. Your orders must be obeyed.” Teal’c continued Daniel’s thought.

“But there’s more than that to it, isn’t there, sir? There are other conditions.” Sam tilted her head. She had a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach.

Jack took a breath. “Before I take over, I need to bring down Bauer and his buddies. I can’t do that if I’m riding a desk running the SGC. That's where SG-1 comes in, and Maybourne and Rabb. We need to get these guys. We’re all still in danger as long as they’re out there.”

“So we’re doing this?” Daniel said.

“I don’t see how we have any choice in the matter, Danny. If we don’t handle this, it’s just going to keep chasing us until it catches us or kills us.” Jack told him.

“It is the only way we will end this difficulty,” Teal’c agreed.

“Exactly.” Jack said. He glanced at Sam who had remained quiet. He didn’t like that. Quiet was not Sam’s default setting during mission planning. “Carter?”

“Don’t we have a logistics issue?”

“Nope. You and Danny will stay behind and dig into Maybourne’s intel. Teal’c, Harm, and I will go track down the Trust members floating in space.” Jack thought for a moment. “On second thought, I might have Harm run interference if you have to gallivant off to parts unknown.” Jack said to Sam.

“Yah, and I’ll be watching his back too. Hi Sam.” Came a familiar dusty voice from the doorway to Daniel’s lab where they had congregated.

“Sir…”

“I know... I know… but it’s his lead and he knows where to look. I’d just be guessing.”

Sam sighed dramatically at him. Jack gave her a ‘who me’ sort of look.

“Anyway, a buddy of mine will be joining you to track down the Trust,” Jack told Sam and Daniel. He had nothing against Malcolm Barrett but he wanted his own people that he trusted on this. Something about Barrett worried him. “Why don’t we all head back to the house? T, stop and pick us up some steaks would yah?”

“It will be my pleasure to do so, O’Neill.” Teal’c told him.

“Am I invited or should I sneak in through the roof?” Harry asked Jack with an amused smirk.

Jack gave him a flat unfriendly look. “Cute. Carter, make sure you count the silverware after he leaves tonight.”

“Yes sir.” Sam said and bit her lower lip trying not to laugh. It was hard to continuously dislike Harry regardless of his periodic idiocy.

* * *

Sam and Jack were absorbed in showering their daughter with new parent attention when Harry came in and gave the nanny an imperceptible nod. Teal’c, however, cut his eyes back to what he was doing after Harry’s entrance, remained silent. He would not say anything on the matter to O’Neill, but he was reassured now that baby Grace would be in safe hands during his absence. 

Harm came in as Jack was putting the steaks on the grill. “Don’t burn mine, Jack.” He admonished his former client.

“Whaddya mean?” Jack groused, giving him a slight glare.

“I’ve been warned.” It was Hammond himself who had told Harm if he didn’t like his steaks vulcanized to speak up early.

“Fine, fine. Everyone’s a critic.” Jack grumped and moved one of the steaks further away from the flame. Behind him, Sam bit her lip in amusement. 

Things almost felt normal. A barbeque at Jack’s.... except now she was living there as well and sleeping in his bed with him. For about the hundredth time today, Sam cursed her body’s failure to snap back immediately. She was still bleeding a little four weeks after giving birth and she was frankly sick of it. Then Jack had invited someone to help with the op as had Harm. Sam went inside to put out plates and napkins on the dining room table only to find Daniel finishing up the job.

“You didn’t have to do that,” Sam told him with a smile.

“I wanted to,” Daniel said simply. “How are you feeling? Still sore?”

“Only a little. Jack has been pampering me the last couple weeks even on base.”

“He should after everything you went through for him. Why do you think he called in one of his old buddies instead of tagging Mal?”

Sam shrugged. “It’s Jack… so who knows. Could be someone he trusts with this…”

“Or he could have noticed Mal thinks you’re pretty.”

Sam looked at Daniel oddly. “He does?” She said in confusion. She’d never noticed.

Daniel just shook his head in amusement. And Jack thought he was oblivious. “The only thing I didn’t put out yet was the fruit salad.”

“I’ll get it.” Sam said.

From outside, Jack yelled “Steaks are done!” and kicked the doorwall open instead of asking for help in spite of the long suffering look Teal’c gave him for it.

Jack slung the plate with the steaks, charred to perfection with the help of his own favorite beer “marinade”, on the dining room table next to the baked potatoes Sam had just taken out of the oven. The huge salad, in all its crisp, green veggie goodness, sat in front of Teal’c, who was eyeing it with as much hunger as he was the overdone steaks. 

Jack pulled out the chair next to Sam and sat down. He looked down the table at his friends, Harm, and even Harry. “Well, don’t just sit there. I’m hungry. Dig in.” He grabbed the plate of steaks and pulled one off the top before turning to Sam, who looked at the small burnt offering Jack was sliding onto her plate. “There’s no marinade on this one,” he winked. “Betcha didn’t think I’d remember.”

Sam smiled, but sighed inwardly. She’d fight the “yes, I can have a beer” battle later when they were alone. Besides, she wasn’t sure it was going to help anyway, even if Jack swore by it as a tenderizer. Jack always cooked the steaks over the fires of Mordor, no matter how good the cut.

The rest of the food made its way around the table, helped along with a little elbow jostling, and a few words of caution aimed at Harm.

The doorbell rang just as Jack was lifting his first bite of steak toward his mouth. He dropped his fork to his plate and rolled his eyes at Daniel, the usual culprit.

“That’ll be my contact,” he said as he threw his napkin on the table and stood. “I’ll just go …” he motioned vaguely at the door as he headed out of the room.

“Or mine,” said Harm, following him.

They reached the door at the same time. Jack indicated Harm to stand back, as he opened the door, standing just behind it so he could slam it shut if he had to. Harm didn’t question the man’s paranoia at this point of the game.

A slender, gray-haired man with brilliant blue eyes stood near the step. “I see I’m at the right place,” he said, grinning.

Jack turned to Harm. “This is Agent...”

“Jethro Gibbs,” Harm finished.

“I see you two have met,” Gibbs said with a smirk then walked through the door like he owned it. “I’m here. Where’s the steak?

* * *

“Just leave the dishes,” Jack leaned back from the table and rubbed his stomach. “I’ll clear up later. Let's go to the other room. We have…” He was interrupted by Gracie’s crying and Sam heading up the stairs.

“Go ahead, Jack,” Daniel said, nodding toward the doorway. “We’ll clean up while you check on Gracie.”

Teal’c and Daniel, as the most familiar with Jack’s house, took over the kitchen while the others cleared the table and brought the dishes to the counter. They finished and were just sitting in the living room by the time Jack returned, holding Gracie, freshly changed, on his shoulder. Sam was just behind him, carrying a manila folder.

Sam sat in the comfy chair placed by the fireplace. Jack placed Gracie in her arms and took the folder before getting a chair from the kitchen and setting it next to her.

“Gibbs, there’s something we need to do here before we start talking,” Jack said, sliding the folder across the coffee table toward. It stopped sliding as another folder dropped on top of it.

Gibbs picked up both folders, opening them one at a time and shaking his head. He had to meet the person who prepared the documents. He raised two Non-Disclosure Agreements. 

Jack and Harm looked at the identical pieces of paperwork, then at each other. Jack sighed. “Walter probably got a kick out of that.” 

“Indeed,” said Teal’c and everyone started laughing. 

Harm reached over and Gibbs silently handed him back the second folder. “There’s no need for two of these,” he said. “Jack, I called in Gibbs because he’s the best there is and I trust him with my life, but I see you already know that. I’ve done what I was sent here to do. We’re on your turf now.” He’d talked to A.J. last night about the ongoing situation and the older man had agreed his docket was less important than taking down a dirty General was.

Jack nodded. He and Gibbs went back to Kosovo and the Gulf. “Okay. My turf. I’d say my problem, but this one involved all of us.” He turned to Gibbs.

“You need to sign the Non-Disclosure Agreement before we can go any further. All I can tell you at this point is it's going to be dangerous and it might get dirty. But it’s one of the most important things you’ll ever do. And you cannot ever talk about it.”

Gibbs glanced over the Non-Disclosure agreement, which Hammond had already signed. There was no way he would have heard from both these men at the same time if it wasn’t as serious as it could get. The first time he met Harm, he’d saved his butt. He’d never been anything other than the most honorable and truthful man he’d met. Jack O’Neill. That was different. They’d been deployed at the same time in Kosovo and in a special operation in Kuwait. He’d trusted him with his life then, and knew he would now. He took the pen Jack had dropped on the table and signed.

After putting the signed document back in the folder, Jack leaned forward and stared Gibbs in the eye. “Jethro, before we get down to the current problem, you need some background so you’ll have a better idea of what we’re dealing with. What I am about to tell you is classified under Section 11-C-9 of the National Security Act.

“In 1928 in Giza, Egypt, archaeologists uncovered an ancient device capable of instantaneous transportation to other planets by means of a sub-space wormhole. A team was assembled to make it work. Captain Doctor Samantha Carter,” he grinned and nodded toward his soon-to-be wife, “wrote the program that dials an address on the transportation device, what we call the Stargate. Doctor Daniel Jackson,” he nodded toward Daniel, “decoded the address hieroglyphs on the device. Both of them together, along with Catherine Langford, made it possible for a team to travel to Abydos, another planet, in 1994. Abydos was controlled...”

Gibbs listened, trying to keep his astonishment from showing. He glanced at Harm for confirmation as Jack continued. Harm’s nod might have helped him believe what he was hearing, but it didn’t do anything to stop the tightening in his gut. He was only a little distracted by the baby who was starting to fuss.

Sam had tuned out as Jack started explaining the details Gibbs would need. She could recite the program history in her sleep herself and she had a fussy, hungry baby to accommodate. She listened with half an ear though because she still needed to be involved. She settled Gracie in her arm and threw the baby blanket over her shoulder, and unbuttoned her blouse. She released the drop down cup and waited for Gracie to latch on before she moved the blanket away from Grace’s face and turned her attention back to the room, ignoring Gibbs raised eyebrows and Maybourne’s grin. She was going to be part of this team, and they’d just have to deal with it. So was Jack.

“Do you have any questions?” Jack asked Gibbs, ignoring Sam’s maneuver. This wasn’t his first rodeo with her pointedly asserting her right to be where she was. He stopped himself from grinning about memories of an offer to arm wrestle. He had no intention of letting her live that one down. Ever.

“Let me be sure I have the basics. We found a way to travel around the universe, but the bad guys want control. They also want to make you, Sam, Daniel, and Teal’c, go away permanently. They just tried to do that, but Harm made sure that didn’t happen. Now you have to take the bad guys out before they come after you again. But the bad guys are high up in the government and it isn’t going to be easy. It also doesn’t look like there’s much choice. Have I got that right?”

Jack nodded. “Yep. I would say that’s it in a nutshell. Guys?”

Sam shrugged pragmatically with a lopsided frown. Teal’c nodded and Daniel put up his hands in an ‘it is what it is’ gesture.

Hearing no disagreement, he continued. “Harry and I found some info on Kinsey several years ago. Recently, Harm sent him out to find out what he could about what’s going on now.”

Harry grinned and waved a USB drive. 

Jack knew he was about to repeat what he’d discussed with them earlier, but Gibbs wasn’t there at the time. Repeating it meant bringing Gibbs up to speed, but it also meant reinforcing it for his team. 

“We’re going to have to split up to cover everything. So, I’ll be in charge of the overall op, but specifically, the offworld team. That’ll be me, Harry, Teal’c. Gibbs will be in charge of the earth-side investigation. His team will be Danny-boy and Sam. Harm will be our intermediary between the teams. We’ll all coordinate through him.”

Gibbs was silent, listening to Jack, but still watching the interplay among the group. He knew Jack and Harm, but didn’t know the others. He didn’t trust Harry Maybourne, but Jack seemed to, at least to a point. Still, he was a smarmy little worm, and Gibbs just didn’t like him. He didn’t know Sam at all, but from Jack’s briefing, she was as trained as any special ops operative and smarter than any of them, a National Treasure, he was told, remembering the pride in Jack’s voice as he described her. She was also a new mother, and Gibbs wasn’t at all sure how that would work out. Jack also trusted Jackson, the archeologist. Gibbs wasn’t sure what they needed an archaeologist for, but he hoped that particular skill would pay off.

Teal’c? Jack said he was the head of an army on his planet. He was obviously a man of few words, but his eyes took in everything going on, constantly assessing and reassessing. Gibbs was sure Teal’c knew everything he needed to know about him before they’d finished their steaks. 

Sam and Daniel didn’t know him either, but he felt if Jack trusted him, they would too. He also didn’t think that they would follow him without questions though. Jackson seemed to question Jack on everything, but Jack seemed to take it in stride. That was telling, too. For whatever reason, Jack wanted the archaeologist's opinion. He did seem to ask good questions though, so perhaps that was the whole point.

“Any questions so far?” Jack asked. “No?” He looked around the group again, pausing only momentarily on Sam, a small smile gracing his lips as his daughter moved a little against the blanket over Sam’s arm. She had adjusted it after Gracie latched as she didn’t like nursing under a blanket and would bite. 

“So, Harry, what’s on that thingy you brought?”

“Anyone got a laptop?”

“You aren’t getting anything you own near my laptop, Maybourne.” Sam said to him. Harry had the nerve to look hurt and disappointed.

“Oh, plug it into mine. God knows it’s toast already anyway.” Jack said of his laptop that he abused more than worked on it.

“Good point.” Daniel told him and fished the laptop out from behind the couch to hand to Harry.

Harry used his sleeve to dust it off and set it on the coffee table. A few moments later everyone was gathered to look at the documents he pulled up.

Harm whistled. 

“Told yah.” Jack said to him.

“I’ve seen some dirty brass but that’s way up there, Jack. He never should have made General.”

“Be a real shame if JAG had hard evidence of that, wouldn’t it.” Jack told Harm with a feral grin.

Harm grinned back. Jack’s instincts had been dead on. Bad life decisions when Bauer was younger made him the patsy of a particularly dirty Senator. They probably couldn’t get at Kinsey but they could neuter the Trust and take Bauer out of the equation. Harm started pondering the situation tactically. He suspected Jack already had that covered though. There was a reason the brass wanted Jack running the SGC after Hammond moved up. He was able to skip over all the plodding methodical planning steps and get right to the op and how best to handle unexpected situations.

“So what are we doing here?” Harry finally asked Jack.

“You’re coming with Teal’c and me to start nabbing their offworld contacts. Jethro is going to get proof Bauer is dirty and then we’ll all sing Kumbaya and have a beer in Kinsey’s honor.” Jack said with a dark smile.

Gibbs snorted in amusement. 


	2. Chapter 2

Sam shook her head and sighed. They had hashed out most of the game plan. Everyone had finally left. Jethro was staying at the same hotel as Harm, while Harry was staying in a local brothel knowing him. Their nanny, Lonnie, had taken Grace to bed while they were hashing things out for the mission and gone to bed herself. She seemed nice enough and had stayed in her room during planning. Part of her employment agreement had been a three twelve. After uncharacteristically locking up the house because he had more than just himself to think about now which made him grin a bit, Jack came back into the room. She hummed contentedly when Jack sat at the other end of the couch and lifted her feet onto his lap to rub them.

“I bet you missed this cooped up on base.” He said warmly. He’d done this for her many times even when they weren’t lovers.

“Among other things.” She said contentedly which earned her a smirk. 

“You all right with me heading out tomorrow?”

“Do I have a choice?”

Jack sighed. Yes. No. Gracie made this all worth it. But she was also the reason Sam was staying behind. “I can delegate this if you need me to.” He finally said.

Sam shook her head. She knew he needed to do this. She could plan a wedding and search for a skeleton at the same time. She could.

“You sure?” He said as he hit exactly the right spot that elicited a low almost sexual moan from her.

“Oh god.” She moaned and arched a little on the couch.

Jack grinned. “Still tired?”

Sam looked at him from under heavy lidded eyes. “You better be up to finishing what you started.”

“You have any doubts?”

Sam gave him a sly smile then frowned a little. “I’m still spotting.”

“I’ll be gentle.” He said. “Shower?” She tilted her head in consideration. “Otherwise I can put towels on the bed.”

“Shower,” she said. Not that she minded but getting blood out of towels was a pain and she had enough stained sheets already to prove she wasn’t that great at getting blood out of things when her period decided to start in the middle of the night.

Jack gently lifted her legs out of his lap and stood, drawing her up with him. “To the shower then, Mrs. O’Neill.” He said with a grin.

Sam giggled. “I’m going to have to keep my maiden name for work you know, and all my scientific papers are under Carter.”

“That’s fine. It’s just a name, Sam.”

“But…”

Jack kissed her nose. “I’m going to call you Carter balls deep in my 80s. It’s just a name, Sam.”

Sam smiled a little at him. It wasn’t full on but it was his smile. “So are you saying you’ll be in your late 80s calling me Carter or....”

Jack’s arms snaked around her waist and he held her hard against him. “I mean...” His lips descended on the vein that ran just behind her ear on her neck. “I will be so deep inside you I’ll be coming out your nose.”

Sam choked on a snort of laughter at the mental image. “Jack.” She said laughing.

He chuckled and took her hand, kissed her knuckles then led her to the stairs. “In case I haven’t mentioned it today, Carter, I adore you. You are the best thing that’s happened in my life in a long time.” 

This time Sam gives him a full on grin.

“Now take your adoring soon-to-be husband to the shower to love and worship every inch of your beautiful body.”

“I’m going to have to plan an entire wedding by myself.”

“Call Cassie.”

She turned and looked back at him. “I knew there was a reason I was marrying you. Brilliant ideas.”

He shrugged. “It’s what I do.” Then he grinned and swatted her bottom. “Go take your clothes off.” He ordered. “I’ll get the shower warmed up. Then I’m going to rub you all over with soap and after I’m going to rub you all over with me.” He said with considerable glee.

Sam chuckled and led him the rest of the way up the stairs. 

Once under the warm spray of water, Jack made good on his declaration and began kissing Sam’s shoulders, her neck, the valley between her currently extremely ample breasts. “Sam,” he said almost absently, nuzzling one breast.

“Hm?” Sam said vaguely around the haze of lust he was igniting inside her.

“You are marrying me because you love me, right? I mean, it’s not just because Hammond is making us.”

Sam whose hands had been buried in his hair stilled. “Jack, of course I love you. Why would you think I don’t?”

Jack just shrugged though but didn’t answer.

“Jack?”

“All right…” He dragged out. “You don’t say it, Sam, and I’m not the most confident guy, okay?”

Sam’s eyes went wide. He was right. She’d just taken it for granted that he knew just like she knew he loved her without any words. “Jack…”

“I don’t want you to feel pressured. If you aren’t ready to get married, we don’t have to. I’ll just retire after this op and that will be the end of it.”

Sam grabbed his hair and tilted his head so he was looking up at her from between her breasts. “Don’t you dare. We are getting married, Colonel, and that’s that.” She said sternly. 

“Did you make sure Harry didn’t steal any of the flatware?” His look was comically sincere.

Sam laughed. “Forget about the flatware. I want to hear more about how you’re going to bury yourself in me so deep you come out my nose.”

“Your wish is my command.” Jack told her as he rose up and claimed her mouth, his hands sliding around her slick wet back and pulling her against him. “My Samantha.” He said, his voice as warm as maple syrup on fresh pancakes.

Sam dug her fingers into Jack’s rear and pressed herself against him. 

Jack hummed against her lips. “Sweetheart, as much as you might want it hot and hard, I don’t think your body is up to it yet.”

Sam groaned in frustration, but Jack went back to kissing her. “But…”

His fingers slid between them and cupped the soft curls between her legs. He stroked her gently while he trailed kisses along her jaw. “It’s going to be a while. I want memories that make my toes curl.” He said as his knuckles trailed around the outside of her left breast. “I want you to build up so much you scream my name, Sam.” He lifted one of her legs and hooked it around his waist as the hand that had been cupping her so tenderly dipped between the silky folds. He slid a finger gently into her as his thumb stroked gentle circles around the tightening little nub at the top of all that silky smooth pink delightfulness. 

Sam whimpered and pressed into him.

“More?” He said teasingly as his mouth descended on a nipple and he gently ran his tongue around it, knowing she’d be far too sensitive for him to get aggressive about it. She tasted so sweet.

“Jack.” She whimpered. “Please.”

Jack slid a second finger inside her and slowly stroked her, his fingers curled upward to make contact with that small slightly rougher patch inside that made her press her hips up hard into his hand. 

“God… Jack.” She said breathlessly.

He just kept slowly moving his fingers in and out of her while his thumb made soft little circles until her fingers dug into his shoulders.

“Jack!” She said in a strangled cry as everything faded to white for her and she shuddered with release.

He smiled as he slowly entered her and the aftershocks of her orgasm nearly had him lose control but he knew she’d still be bruised and sore so he gritted his teeth, eyes closed and just held her until she came down from the endorphin rush. When she finally blinked at him lazily, he smiled and kissed her slowly. He rocked his hips gently, enough for the sensation to create a slow pleasant pulling and not cause her more pain than she was already in. 

Sam hummed sleepily as she rested against him. She felt terrific and frankly she didn’t mind if he did that all night. She heard an amused chuckle and looked in his eyes.

“You aren’t helping my ego falling asleep during sex, Sam.”

“Sorry… just feels so good that’s all.” She admitted. 

Jack laughed. “Glad I can be of service, ma’am.” And tipped an imaginary cowboy hat at her.

This made Sam start to giggle helplessly, her whole body jiggling against Jack’s which set off a chain reaction of Jack losing control and convulsively pressing her against the shower tiles with his release but in an act of revenge, his fingers snaked back into her curls and gave her a half dozen hard strokes which sent her over the edge right after him. She was so surprised at her second orgasm that she bit his shoulder.

Jack yelped and nearly dropped her.

Both started snickering again which led to kissing and friendly fondling of each other until the water started to cool off.

“Damn. We need a bigger water heater.” Jack groused. 

“I could install a tankless one.” Sam suggested.

“They make those?”

“Oh yah. Never run out of hot water again.” She said cheerfully.

Jack turned off the tepid spray and wrapped a towel around Sam before grabbing one for himself. Sam was snickering.

“What?”

“You… um… might want to keep your shirt on until that heals.” She giggled.

Jack looked in the mirror. On his left shoulder, there was a distinct outline of her teeth where she’d bit him when her second orgasm had ripped through her. He grinned. “Hell no. I’m going to make Harry look at it and tell him that’s your reward for making a woman scream your name during sex.” He said with a shit eating grin.

Sam dissolved into laughter.

* * *

Several hours later, Sam blinked at Jack who was softly singing ‘Here Comes the Sun’ to their daughter in their room. She smiled a little. “Is she hungry?” Sam said sleepily.

“Mommy’s awake.” Jack said in a soft sing song voice. “Took her long enough, didn’t it? Yes it did.” He cooed which made Sam chuckle as she unbuttoned the front of her nightgown. “Now mommy is going to flash daddy but you don’t care because you just want yummy, sweet milk, don’t you?” He continued.

Sam shook her head in amusement and scooted over so Jack could lay Grace in the middle of the bed before lying back down himself.

“I’ll put her back in her crib when she’s done.” Jack mumbled sleepily but then yawned hugely and his eyes drooped.

Sam smiled and stroked his face gently as Gracie found her exposed nipple and clamped on. Her smile went to a wince.

“Your mommy is a biter too.” Jack said with sleepy amusement.

“Very funny, sir.” Sam said primly.

“Did I say I was complaining?” He tugged a tuft of hair next to her ear lightly with amusement. 


	3. Chapter 3

“Last chance, Carter.” Jack said to Sam, just before he was about to head out. They were in the briefing room going over the mission parameters one last time with Hammond before Jack left with his team. Jethro was hiding it well but he was fairly agog at the huge wheel outside the window. Jack noticed and nudged Sam “Wait until Walter lights her up.” Jack joked quietly with a head tilt to Gibbs.

“Just make sure you initiate them both properly if you have the chance.” Sam said. Her face professional other than the unholy light of evil in her eyes.

“Do I even want to know?” Gibbs asked, his face a mask of concern.

“They like to shove people through the first time. Jack started it, but it’s tradition now.” Daniel supplied.

“Saunders landed on his face.” Sam said with an amused smirk.

“In a cow pile.” Jack finished.

They turned and gave Gibbs looks of evil glee.

George walked into the briefing room from his office. “All right, people, let’s get back to business.” Hammond said to Jack and Sam in particular who only acted more childish when Daniel joined in the entertainment.

Gibbs and Rabb got up and stood at attention, but George waved them down. “We don’t stand on ceremony for briefings, gentlemen.” Turning to their former colleague, Hammond had a final question. “Colonel Maybourne, can you assure me with reasonable certainty that you know approximately where Kinsey’s pawns are?”

Harry nodded. “They could have moved around some but they won’t go too far because it might make their jobs harder and working hard isn’t the Trust’s MO. I’m pretty sure we can bag and tag quickly.”

“Good. What can you tell me about his Earth side operations?

“Well, I’m no expert on the law but I’m pretty sure disposing of a body is against the law.” Harry said dryly.

Hammond made a ‘get on with it’ gesture after giving Harry an unfriendly look.

“Well… you read my report and saw the files. There’s really not much more I can add yet.” Harry admitted.

Hammond nodded thoughtfully. “And you’re sure it’s confined to the Trust? I really don’t want to have to take down half the Senate.”

Harry shrugged.

“You don’t know?” Gibbs asked him incredulously.

“They didn’t tell me to look there.” Harry told Jethro dismissively. “You want more, you gotta tell me so.”

Jack rolled his eyes and threw up a hand.

Hammond’s face fell into his hand. “I don’t suppose it matters at this point. No one else is trying to destroy the program. It seems like this issue is personal so let’s confine it to the major players and worry about the rest of it when... and _if_ we have to.”

There was a round of nods and ‘yes sirs’.

“Anything else?” Hammond asked.

“Sir,” Jack said.

“What is it, Colonel?”

“Maybourne needs to go with my team. Commander Rabb is the better choice for team coordinator on base and Sergeant Gibbs has field assets here on earth that will be of higher strategic value to Carter and Daniel than Commander Rabb’s team can be.” He glanced at Harm. “No offence.”

“None taken,” Harm said out of the side of his mouth. Bud was a great investigator but he wasn’t cleared for this op. Hell, he was barely cleared for this op, he thought as he side-eyed the Gate that he was only seeing for the first time today after several weeks spent on base for Jack’s trial.

“Major, once you are medically cleared you will take point on the investigation here on Earth.”

Sam nodded. She had half mind to object but it should only be a couple more days. “Yes sir.”

“In the meantime, you, Daniel, and the Sergeant here ferret out anything you can about Bauer. Someone has to know something from back then. Find it.”

“Yes sir.” Sam agreed.

“All right, people, you have your assignments.

There was a shuffling of papers as both teams got up to leave. “Anyone hungry?” Jack asked them.

Daniel gave him a sloppy shrug of assent and Sam rolled her eyes. Things had not perceptibly changed apparently.

* * *

Their meal was unusually quiet. Jack sat next to Sam but they didn’t make a big deal about it as they usually sat together anyway. Daniel was unusually reflective and respected their need for silence. This would be the first time they had genuinely been apart in over a year and a half. He knew himself you get sort of used to your partner just being there all the time and it feels very off when they are not. The pain of losing his wife had faded but it would always be with him.

“Are you prepared to hunt for your quarry, Agent Gibbs?” Teal’c asked him.

Gibbs drank the dregs from his cup, winced at the bitter, burned coffee, and put the cup back on the table before he looked at Teal’c. Thinking it was time to let the Jaffa know he wasn’t the only one quietly observing the new members of his team, he slapped his hands on either side of his plate and said blandly, “Indeed.”

Teal’c raised an eyebrow at the other man. 

Jack watched them out of the corner of his eye while he fished something out of his own coffee thoughtfully. Gibbs was trending dangerous waters, joking with T before getting to know him but to Jack’s surprise, Teal’c laughed. 

“Jaffa joke?” Jack asked mildly.

“Indeed.” Daniel said in a deep voice and snorted on a chuckle.

“Your companion is quite amusing, O’Neill.”

“Good to know, big guy.” Jack said with a small grin. 

“Wonderful, you are now part of the tribe.” Harm said dryly to Gibbs.

“Just what I always wanted.” Gibb quipped back.

Jack threw up a hand in mock defeat.

* * *

The original members of SG-1 stood in the back of the Gate room talking quietly. Gibbs was in the control room with Walter. Harm and Harry were waiting for Jack and Teal’c by the Gate ramp.

“This really shouldn’t take too long.” Jack was telling them. “Maybourne swears he knows where these idiots are so all we have to do is zat them and drag them back. He thinks they might all be in the same spot.”

“Take care of yourself, Jack.” Daniel said.

“Yah. Keep an eye on things, would yah?” Jack says and cuts his eyes to Sam for a millisecond.

“I will.” Daniel tells him, getting the message loud and clear. 

“I’m right here, you know.”

“Sam? Is that you? The light… it’s fading…” Jack said, his hands up as though he was going blind.

“Very funny, sir.” She huffed but there was a small grin on her face at his antics. “We’ll have Harm contact you if we make any breakthroughs.”

“Same.” Jack said, bobbing his head before giving her a long look and turning to the Gate, rolling his shoulder for Teal’c to follow. 

Sam’s military professionalism stance and expression did not reflect her inner worry. She didn’t like him going out there without her to watch his six.

“I will bring O’Neill back as he left, Major Carter.”

“Thanks, Teal’c. You be safe too.”

“Indeed.” He told her with a small bow before turning to follow Jack to the base of the ramp.

A moment later after a brief conversation with Jack, Harm joined Daniel and Sam by the stairs heading up to 27.

Gibbs stood in the space the airman escorting him had indicated when he entered the Control Room. O’Neill’s team was gathered in the Gate room below doing a final equipment check. They were standing away from the front of the ramp which went up to a huge two ringed circle with hieroglyphs on the inner ring.

“That’s the Stargate, Master Sergeant,” he looked at the nametag “Harriman?” he asked. 

“That’s what they tell me, sir,” Harriman responded, his fingers flying over the keyboard in front of him.

Gibbs gave Harriman a sharp look but didn’t say anything as Hammond appeared beside him. Gibbs’ looked up, took a breath in anticipation, and peered back at the group below. After everything he’d been briefed, he wanted to see this Stargate to other planets in action. He decided the inside ring must turn, but wasn’t sure how that related to the outside ring with its arrows.

Hammond took the mike and pressed the button. “SG-1, are you ready?”

O’Neill turned and gave Hammond a thumbs up. Hammond nodded to Harriman, who keyed a few short strokes into his computer then placed his hand on a pad next to him.

Gibbs watched as steam appeared to come from the Stargate and the inner circle began to move. It stopped at one of the arrows on the outer ring, which lit up, and Harriman said “Chevron One Encoded”

The Stargate turned again, hissing more steam, then stopping at another arrow which lit up. “Chevron Two Encoded.” As each new Chevron lit up, Harriman repeated its number and said “Encoded.” When the seventh lit up, he said “Chevron Seven locked, sir.” Gibbs’ jaw dropped when he heard a loud “Whoosh” as the center of the Gate filled with an effervescent pool of light, then pushed out a huge bubble almost to the end of the platform before settling back into what looked like a brightly lit pool of water. He jerked his jaw closed, the sound of his teeth audibly clicking shut, and his eyebrows rose almost to his hairline. He tried to keep the amazement off his face as he turned to Hammond and deadpanned. “Electric bill must be huge.” 

“We’re self-contained, sir. Our power is generated inside the mountain.” Walter’s voice was slightly smug.

“You don’t say.” Gibbs said in absent fascination.

Hammond pushed the button on the mike again. “SG-1, you have a go. Godspeed.”

Below them Jack saluted Hammond before turning to the Gate and walking through with the large man Gibbs had been told was something called a Jaffa and the shady Colonel Maybourne.


	4. Chapter 4

“Jack told me I could use his office while he’s gone. Said something about not dusting and leave his yo-yo alone.” Harm told Sam and Daniel.

Daniel nodded. “That makes sense. We won’t have to search for you and we’ll know the extension to get you at.”

“Don’t read the book in the bottom left drawer.” Sam warned him.

“What? Why?”

“Simmons left it.” Was all she said.

“Was that the one Jack said was--”

“We do NOT discuss that book.” Sam warned Daniel.

Harm looked back and forth between them. Whatever the book was, now he wanted to know which he supposed was why she’d brought it up.

* * *

“Maybourne…” Jack growled in a clear warning. “Why is the planet _empty_?!” He snarled

“We need an unknown base of operations, Jack.” Harry said reasonably.

“You could have... I don’t know… _warned_ me.” Jacks eyes were narrowed in frustration at Harry’s typical paranoid spook behavior.

“Not without warning everyone else too. For all we know there’s someone at the SGC who’s listening. I didn’t find any bugs in your house but that doesn’t mean anything. You don’t have to plant bugs if you have a strong enough satellite ear.”

Jack’s eyes would have bugged out of his head if they could have. How does this weasel know about this stuff? “Harry… please tell me the rest of what you told us was the truth.”

“Well, most of it was.” Harry hedged.

“I’m going to kill you, Maybourne. I’m going to shoot you in the back. I’m going to string you up like a veal.”

“O’Neill.”

“I wasn’t done yet.”

“I shall check the perimeter.”

Jack sighed. “Yah. Fine. Maybe you can find some rocks for Danny to play with later or something.”

“Indeed.” Teal’c agreed and strode away from Jack’s lengthy tirade about all the creative ways Jack was going to get revenge on Harry. In the background, he heard Jack continue on at length without pausing. Some of his descriptions showed considerable creativity.

* * *

“All right, so where do we want to start?” Daniel asked Sam and Gibbs.

“I have some people who can start digging on my end. Maybourne is sleazy but thorough. There’s a lot to start with,” Gibbs answered.

“There’s some files on Maxwell Air Force base. I’ll start there. See if we can find someone who might remember something.” Sam suggested, keying a few strokes on the keyboard of her laptop.

“Want me to help you figure out where they are now?” Daniel asked.

“Sure, that shouldn’t be too hard,” she muttered. “I’ve pulled up the microfiche archives from the local paper. There’s an article about a missing girl. Looks like the case was never solved. It also looks like Kinsey helped cover up the crime.” Opening another window, Sam keyed in another search parameter. “This shouldn’t be so easy to find, but someone has digitized a number of old bank records,” She was typing again. “Look here. Someone paid the family to shut up. It says an anonymous contact donated money to the search fund but then the parents stopped looking for her.” Sam said thoughtfully. 

“That’s a pretty obvious payoff but how are you so sure it ties into Kinsey.” Gibbs told Sam, leaning over her shoulder at the screen where Sam had two files displayed side by side.

“Yah, normally it wouldn’t be so obvious but that same week Kinsey’s bank records show a big donation… to the Karen Danvers search organization which was the charity set up by the parents to pay people who had information or helped them look.” Sam told him.

“Which had they not stopped looking, it wouldn’t have looked like anything other than a generous charity donation to a grieving family.”

“Exactly.” Sam said with a grim smile.

“Think we should talk to her parents first?” Daniel asked. “Assuming they’re still alive.”

“Do we have photos of them from the early seventies?” Sam asked Daniel.

Daniel shrugged. “If not, they shouldn’t be too hard for us to find.”

“I’ll have them by the end of the day.” Gibbs told them.

Sam nodded absently while she continued looking through the files, putting the pieces together in her head. “Let’s get a list going, Daniel. I can call people tonight from home so it doesn’t come up as a military base on their caller ID if they have it.” Her voice was thoughtful.

“Good call. Mind if I use your home office as a base of operations?” Gibbs asked Sam.

“Normally no, but right now it’s the nanny’s bedroom. Jack moved his desk and some other things down to the basement. I put it in the den but he changed his mind after remembering how toddlers are. I can have a phone line run down there by the end of the day if you need it?”

“How's the cell phone reception?”

Sam shrugged. “I haven't tried it to be honest.” She admitted. 

“What about your old house?”

“It definitely gets good cell service in the basement.” Sam said vaguely as though it wasn’t on her radar.

Gibbs put two and two together and got five. Sam and Jack had not been having an affair. He really had been innocent. If he’d been playing house with Sam prior to the botched mission Sam would have known if the cell service in Jack’s basement was good or not. “Great. Just… ah... have a line run I guess. Just in case. Harm said your house was pretty small and we’d have to bring the nanny and baby with us anyway so there’s no point, is there?”

Daniel was looking at him oddly. “No. There really isn’t.”

Gibbs gave Daniel a wide eyed innocent look that had Daniel’s eyebrows lowering behind Sam where she wouldn’t see him. Okay, point taken, don’t make a big deal about Jack and Sam’s relationship. Got it, he thought. He shrugged at Daniel and turned back to Sam. “If you start giving me names and ID numbers, I can help with the digging.” He offered and glanced at Daniel to see if that was an acceptable apology for wondering how long his new boss had been shacking up with his 2IC.

Daniel nodded. “I’ll split them with you.” He told Gibbs. He had to remind himself that it was simply a military thing and this was not Jack. Arguing with Gibbs might require slightly more diplomacy.

* * *

Once the camp was set up, Teal’c came back to make their meal. Jack had gotten even with Harry by putting him on latrine trench digging. 

“All right, so where are these clowns?” Jack finally asked Harry over stale crackers from the MREs. 

“Well…” Harry hedged.

“You don’t know?!” Jack thundered at the other man.

“I sort of know.” Harry whined as he winced at the glare from Jack. “Look, I know where they were two months ago. They shouldn’t have gotten far. Can’t you contact the Tok’ra?”

“We’ve been trying to contact the Tok’ra for months. They must have had to move bases again and have hunkered down.”

“The Tok’ra are cowards.” Teal’c said.

“You’re telling me. Dad doesn’t even know Sam was missing or that she’s a mom now.”

“Wait, they didn’t even tell her dad she had a kid?” Harry asked incredulously, forgetting his fear of Jack’s wrath.

“They aren’t exactly the most reliable bunch.” Jack agreed.

“That is a generous assessment, O’Neill.” 

Harry didn’t know what to say to that.

“Alright, let’s get some rest, campers. We can figure this out later.”

“I have some local money for the planet I think they are on so we can get some clothing to blend in.” Harry said, hopefully getting back on Jack’s good side.

“That’s a good start.” Jack said as he laid down on his bed roll, his arms behind his head. “Let’s try not to get captured this time. No offence to you guys, but I’ve had enough of that for now.” Especially with Carter not here. He thought sleepily.

* * *

Meanwhile back at the SGC, Sam had a reasonably full list of the guys who graduated from Officer Candidate School within a few months after the assumed murder. It didn’t account for wash outs but it would be very hard to find anyone who went home before graduation as Officer Candidate School wasn't the same as the Citadel or Academy. You either already had a BA from a university and were there for basic training or you were an enlisted trying to break into the ranks with the promise that you would work on your degree by correspondence while deployed. 

“There were only six hundred twelve in the graduating class. About seven percent or so dropped out or were excused from the program so that’s another forty three or so wash outs we might look for if we can’t find anyone who saw something.”

Harm leaned over her shoulder. “What makes you think it’s related to the School?”

Sam shrugged. “Bauer was an instructor there at the time the girl went missing. There was another death a couple days later. A second lieutenant drowned in the training pool. It was ruled an accident but I wouldn’t be surprised to find these murders are connected.”

Harm looked at Gibbs. “Got anyone who can check into that?”

“Do you really need to ask me that?” Jethro asked his friend dryly.

“Just checking.” Harm said affably. “All right, so those two can get going on tracking them down. Active service should be easy to find. Start with them.”

Sam nodded. “I hate to say this but I should get home.” She had pumped during her workday for tomorrow’s workday but Gracie preferred to nurse over the bottle. 

“Go on, Sam. We’ll start digging and have some of this ready for you by the morning.” Harm said. “In fact, put on coffee and just wait for us. I’ll bring breakfast and we’ll work from your house tomorrow since we need to call people.”

“What if Jack calls in?” Daniel asked.

Gibbs shook his head. “This isn’t a TV show, Jackson, They aren’t going to find them in twenty four hours. They won’t check in with information for a couple days at least.” 

Daniel gave the retired special forces man a flat look. “I know that.”

Sam rolled her eyes. Couldn’t Daniel get along with someone just this once? She wondered with a sigh.

“I’m going to requisition us a conference room so we don’t have to keep packing everything up every day or going to Sam’s house for privacy.” Harm suggested.

“Good plan.” Gibbs agreed.

“That sounds so weird.” Daniel admitted.

Sam nodded. It did. It was Jack’s house but to these two men, it was Sam’s because Sam was the only one who had physically lived there for them.

“At least the doors are locked most of the time now.” Sam grumbled.

“It did make it easier to prank him.” Daniel said.

Sam made an innocent face and whistled. “I’m sure I don’t know what you’re talking about, Daniel.” She said with false innocence.

Daniel grinned.


	5. Chapter 5

Jack woke up and sighed. Teal’c was already up. Harry snores as bad as Daniel. He missed Sam and his little Nugget, he realized. Focus on the job so you can go home, he reminded himself. Oddly, the last time he’d admonished himself that way had been before he lost Charlie. 

He wouldn’t make the same mistakes this time… but Sam wouldn’t be like Sara had been. Sara had loved the idea of him but had struggled with the reality of loving a broken man. A man who had become even more broken after the death of their son. He’d once told Daniel he wasn’t one for self-reflection but Daniel had rightfully called him out on that lie. He doubted he’d ever genuinely get past that period in his life but he’d found love again and a family to care about him and that was more than he’d had before.

And Sam made him want to be a better man, a better husband, a better father than he’d been for Sara. And that was something. He didn’t think he loved Sam more but he did love her more honestly. He didn't hide parts of himself from her like he had from Sara, thinking he was protecting her. 

Sam saw the ugly inside him and understood.

Jack sat up and shook his head. He didn’t have time for this right now. He leaned over and kicked Harry. “Wake up.” he ordered the other man.

“Ow! God, you’re pissy in the morning. How does Sam put up with you?” He groused.

“It’s offset by having a big dick. Get up. We have work to do.” Jack got up himself and left the tent to make a stop at the latrine. 

Harry shook his head. Crabby SOB. After being marooned on the moon with Jack for several months, he was used to Jack’s foul moods so he got up. It did no good to stay annoyed with the man. Just give him a cup of coffee and leave him alone for an hour. 

Once Teal’c had doled out MRE’s and Jack had choked down slightly more than half, he started planning out loud. “All right, first we go get some local clothing from this planet yu think they are on. I vote we send Teal’c as no one will ask him questions.”

Teal’c bowed his head at this and gave Jack an ironic smile.

“Then we go hunting. Zats only. I don’t want to tip the locals off to the fact that we might not belong there.”

“How’s your Arabic, Jack?”

“Huh? Why?”

“Local language is Semitic. Modern era… well… last two thousand years modern which means--”

“Which means it’s one of the last batches the snakes bagged before we shut down Ra on Earth.” Jack cut in. He didn’t need a history lesson. He had Daniel for that.

“Right, so how’s your Arabic?”

“About as good as yours.” Jack admitted. 

Harry’s mouth canted to the side in consideration. He understood it better than he could speak it. “We’ll let the Jaffa do the talking.” 

“That is wise.” Teal’c agreed.

Jack just rolled his eyes. “Great, so we get there, then what?”

“Well, I’m not exactly popular right now so ah… we’re going to have to get creative on how we get a hold of these guys.” Harry admitted. 

“Terrific.” Jack said dryly. “How much on them recognizing me?”

“Pretty even odds. Lower if you change your appearance a lot. Grow a beard, Jack.”

Jack snorted. “Bee Gees. Got it.” He poked at his food a bit. “All right. Let’s get this over with.”

* * *

Sam sat at the kitchen table with the land line. Jack still had a corded phone on the wall in there, having never updated it since he bought the house. The yellow comforted her as did the familiar slight clutter. She’d called about a dozen people so far. Some had been wrong numbers and a few had been people who remembered the murder but didn’t know anything one way or another.

Gibbs was downstairs in the basement doing the same thing and occasionally sending her e-mail update which amused her as it was in the same house. Daniel was in the den with Harm supposedly working but they had taken Gracie with them so Sam suspected they were actually just playing with the baby.

The phone rang as she was about to pick it up which startled her. “Hello?”

“Hey Aunt Sam, what did you need?”

Sam sighed in relief. “Oh thank God. Cassie, I need your help. I have no idea how to plan a wedding and our deadline was six months but it’s been moved up. Now we only have a few weeks and Jack isn’t even home to help me plan and even with a nanny I have no time to do this and coordinate everything and I don’t even know where to start let alone--” Panic was bubbling in her voice.

Cassie cut in. “Whoa... slow down.” She said with a small laugh. “How long do you actually have?”

“Four weeks.” Sam said miserably. 

“Hm… okay, tell you what, let me talk to my professors and see if I can do a month remotely. Either way, I’ll be there in a couple days.”

“Cassie, I don’t want you skipping classes to--”

“Sam! Stop it! I thought you and Uncle Jack were _dead_ for over a year. If my professors don’t understand how important this is, they can kick rocks. Mom left me enough money that if I tank a couple classes, it’s not going to matter.”

“Cass…” Sam’s voice was sad.

“Aunt Sam… it’s okay. Uncle Dave was surprisingly great about the whole thing.” She said of Janet’s ex husband who had never been her father but she was willing to accept as another uncle figure with the loss of her entire family again. 

Sam sighed. “All right.”

“I’ll see you in two days.” It was an eighteen hour drive from the Groom Lake area of Nevada to Colorado Springs.

“All right. Drive safe.” Sam told her and hung up. She sat back and sighed slowly. She hated admitting she needed the help but she had to delegate something and the wedding was the least of her worries right now. She heard a squall of protest and was brought back to one of the things she couldn’t delegate. 

“Lunchtime.” Sam’s nanny said cheerfully. Her green eyes twinkling merrily. She was in her mid-twenties, athletic with shoulder length medium brown hair pulled back into a ponytail.

“It’s fine, Lonnie.” Sam told her and took the baby. She looked down into her tear-filled but trusting eyes but her daughter was more interested in food then her mom’s face and grabbed at Sam’s shirt. “Okay, okay, just a minute. You’re as bad as your father on steak night.”

Lonnie chuckled. “Babies and men have equal interest in breasts. Babies are generally more polite about it.”

Sam grinned. “Probably,” she said as Gracie latched and grunted in satisfaction making both women laugh. “She’s definitely her father’s daughter.”

“From what I met of him that might not be a bad thing.” Lonnie said as she sat, expecting to take the baby back as soon as she was done eating so Sam could get back to work.

Sam nodded. “The guys behaving themselves?” she asked.

Lonnie shrugged. “Daniel is trying to find something on his laptop and Harm has been on the phone with his office most of the morning about his partner’s cases.”

Sam nodded. She wasn’t the only one juggling too many balls. She’d talked to her brother this morning. Hammond had insisted during the trial that all family members be informed of them being found. An officer had been sent to San Diego to inform Mark and his family that Sam had been found but not able to contact him directly yet. In the end. they had left it up to her to tell Mark about the baby. Sam cringed internally about explaining that one. Perhaps she would somehow find the time after Cassie got here and she had some emotional back up.

Gracie let go and looked up at Sam expectantly. Sam chuckled and patted her bottom until she belched then switched sides. She was, overall, a good baby.

“Do you need me to get a hotel room for a few days so your niece can stay here?” Lonnie asked Sam, having overheard half the conversation.

“What? Oh, no,” She said, shaking her head, “it’s not a problem. I haven’t sold my old house yet and it’s right up the road. She can stay there while she visits.” Sam told the younger woman. “Cassie would need some quiet time to study anyway and she won’t get it here.”

“Okay, if you're sure?”

“Completely. The house is enough of a zoo already.” Sam assured the other woman. 

“So, um, I heard the Colonel is being promoted when he gets back from his mission?”

Sam nodded. “Yah, that’s a lot of why we have to push up the wedding. We thought we had six months but I’m technically on leave right now as is Jack. They will retrograde both our pay for the time but we have to be married before he can take the position as the head of the program we’re in.”

“It sounds like you guys got really lucky.”

Sam shrugged. “They only did it to avoid a messy situation on base.” She smiled a little down at Gracie. “That’s not a complaint.”

Lonnie smiled at her. “I didn’t think it was.”

Sam’s cell phone rang and she flipped it open as she handed back the now full and sleepy Gracie. “Carter.” She said.

Lonnie took the baby and backed out of the kitchen to give Sam whatever privacy she needed. The way she’d answered the phone suggested it was the Base.

“What? When?” Sam paused. “Oh no.” She ground. “All right, thank you for telling me.” Sam hung up and folded her arms on the table and buried her face in them. So much for plan A.

Daniel found her that way a few moments later after Lonnie had told him Sam was on the phone with work. “Uh oh.” He said.

Sam lifted her head. “I don’t suppose you could hide me, could you?”

“What? Why?”

Sam laughed a little oddly. “That was Walter. Mark is on his way here.”

“Why here?”

“Because he headed for my house expecting me to be there but there’s still a security box on the door so he went to the base and made the guards get someone to talk to him. Uncle George told him I was living here now and he’s on his way to the house… with the kids and Nancy.”

“Uh oh.” He said again.

“Yah.”

“He uh… he knows this is Jack’s house, doesn’t he?” It was a statement not a question.

“Yup.”

“You are so screwed.”

“Oh yah.”

“Don’t you dare tell him I’m the father.” He admonished her.

“What? No! Daniel!”

Daniel chuckled a little. “How mad is he going to be about this?”

“Well… he’s a lot like dad, so pretty mad.”

Daniel made a ‘yikes’ face.

“Yah exactly. I honestly wish Jack or dad was here to run interference.”

“Have they let your dad know yet?”

“The Tok’ra don’t seem to want to fill him in on what’s going on. I know he said he had a long assignment but it’s a little ridiculous that they didn’t tell him I was missing or that they found me.”

“I bet they would hurry up to tell him about Gracie and the wedding though.”

“Oh yah sure you betcha.” Sam told him, mimicking Jack’s accent when he got really absentminded.

Daniel shook his head but smiled a little. He was happy for them. He really was. He’d have bet his pension on it anyway after all the realities they were together.

“Forget Jack or your dad, I wish Teal’c was here to loom over him and keep him in line.”

Sam giggled. “I wish I’d thought of that one. I might have him stand over me at the wedding so Mark keeps his yap shut.”

“That’s getting weird, Sam?”

“What?”

“You’re literally talking like him now.”

“I am?”

Daniel stared at the ceiling. “It’s probably from having to be in each other’s pockets for a year and a half but yah.”

“That's not all we were in.” Sam muttered.

“I was there, no need to remind me.” Daniel admonished her, wishing he could burn the mental images the sounds of their sighs and moans had evoked in his head night after night to ashes, never to be brought to mind again.

“Sorry.” Sam said and blushed a little but her smile was slightly wicked.

“You did it on purpose.” he accused her but his voice was amused.

“Yah a little. Any success on your end?” She said tactfully changing the subject.

“Just more of the usual. Got some more details on the girl’s death. She was high as a kite but there’s no way to know if she took the drugs herself or they were forced on her at this point.”

“There might be. Can you get a list of what was in her system?”

“Probably.”

Sam nodded. “Cocaine and weed are one thing, Barbiturates would point to her being roofied.”

“Ah. Okay, I see your point.”

There was a crunch of gravel in the driveway.

Daniel and Sam looked at each other uneasily. “Showtime.” She said, her gut fluttering unpleasantly. 

Had Sam known three guns were drawn at the sound of that crunch of gravel she’d have chuckled at their training kicking in over logic. Daniel went to tell the guys what was happening and they could put their guns away.

“Sam?” Mark yelled through the front door as he banged on it.

Sam looked upward, took a deep breath, and let it out in a long sigh before standing and going to the door.

She opened it to her brother standing bundled against the cold. “Sam?” He engulfed her in a tight hug. She hugged him back. Behind him, the kids stood with Nancy.

“Come on in, guys, and get warmed up. It’s a little crowded today.”

“What? Why?”

“It’s a long story I mostly can’t explain.” Sam admitted. 

“That’s half your life, Sam.” Mark admonished her.

“Look, it’s not--” But whatever Sam had intended to say was cut off by Gracie wailing in the other room. Sam’s head snapped to the sound in a way Mark and Nancy recognized immediately as that of a parent.

“What’s going on, Sam?” Mark demanded.

“Er… well…” Sam hedged and wrung her hands.

“Sam, Lonnie had to use the bathroom and she doesn’t seem to like me right now.” Harm admitted, holding the baby gently in spite of her squirming.

“I’ll take her.” Daniel said and took Gracie as Harm handed her off.

“Harmon Rabb, I’m a colleague.” Harm said to Mark in that ‘and you are’ military voice they all seemed to perfect eventually.

“Mark Carter. Sam’s brother.” Mark said flatly.

“Is that the pizza I ordered?” Gibbs said. bounding up the stairs. He knew damn well it wasn’t but he didn’t have patience for chest thumping relatives and he really had ordered pizza. “Oh hi. Jethro Gibbs, you can just call me Gibbs though.” He said sticking out a slender hand for Mark to shake and smiling affable.

Sam almost laughed. It was so similar to something Jack would do it made her feel better immediately. 

“Sam, what’s going on?” Mark finally demanded.

“Um, well, that’s a little hard to explain…” She hedged.

“We’re investigating a murder. Wanna help?” Gibbs asked Mark.

Sam bit her lip in amusement. 

“That’s not exactly my field of expertise and that’s not what I meant anyway.” Mark huffed.

“Oh, there you guys are.” Lonnie said in feigned surprise. “I’ll take her, Daniel.” She said and took the baby. “Sam, are you sure you don’t want me to just get a hotel room?” she asked.

Sam shook her head emphatically. “Nancy, why don’t you and the kids get comfortable. Kids, you know where Uncle Jack keeps the board games. They haven’t been moved. Mark, um, why don’t you and I take a walk.” She said as she moved to grab her coat from the hall tree. “We’ll be back soon.” She told everyone. “Take a break, guys.” She told her team.

“I’ll save you some pizza.” Harm offered.

“Thanks Harm.” She told him, unsure if Jethro had even actually ordered pizza but she was sure he would now. 

* * *

They walked silently together in the cold spring air. A couple blocks away from the house, Mark finally rounded on her. “Sam, what the hell is going on?!”

Sam hunched her shoulders. “It’s a little complicated, Mark.”

“Everything is always complicated with you and Dad. Tell me the parts you can.” He ground out.

Sam gave him an injured look. “Jack and I... and Daniel and Teal’c were on a routine mission to grab someone and bring them in. Completely unrelated another faction from somewhere else was running a crime ring we got swept up in and had to avoid blowing our cover.”

“So you were out of the country.”

Sam nodded. “Yah. We ended up in an internment camp and our base commander had no idea where we were or if we were even still alive for a year and a half.” She sighed. “Mark… it was a baby factory. They were scooping people up and forcing them to…”

Mark blanched. “Sam…” He said thickly, unable to get the words he wanted to ask out.

“No… no I was never raped, Mark. But… well… Colonel O’Neill and I were forced to have sex until I got pregnant.”

“Why didn’t you tell them no?”

“They killed anyone that didn’t comply. We faked it for a really long time, but eventually they caught on and forced us.” She stopped for a moment. “Mark… they told him if he didn't they were going to let anyone who wanted to use me do so.”

“Oh god Sam…”

“Yah… he didn’t have any other choice at that point. I didn’t really give him one. He felt terrible about it.”

Mark nodded silently. He knew she was telling him more than she was officially allowed to.

“So, someone higher up the food chain came to inspect the facility and saw us. He recognized who we were and didn’t want an incident so he smuggled us out and returned us home.”

They walked together silently for another block. “So what happened?”

“What do you mean?”

“You said a year and a half. It was almost two years before I got word you were still alive and they said you were confined to base.”

Sam nodded. “I was. They put Colonel O’Neill on trial for fraternization. Harm got him off. He’s JAG.”

“So why is he still around investigating a murder at your CO’s house and why are you now living there?”

Sam sighed. “One of the requirements to kick the conduct unbecoming charge was Jack being ordered to marry me.”

“And you don’t get a say in this?”

Sam shook her head. “Mark, he asked me before the trial was over. He thought he was going to be forced to retire.”

“How long has that been going on?”

Sam colored.

“I see.” Was all Mark said at first. “Why did you agree to go out with Pete if you had a thing for your boss?”

“We weren’t allowed to be together. I was hoping dating someone else would help me get over my feelings for him.”

“Did Pete know you were just using him?” Mark asked unkindly.

“That’s not fair and you know it! Jack and I knew the military wouldn’t let him retire or me out of the program. There was nothing we could do about it.” She huffed angrily at him.

Mark just shook his head. “But, of course, now because it’s messy they want to force you to get married instead.”

“Mark, you aren’t being fair.” She insisted.

Mark stopped and turned to her though. “Aren’t I? My only sister is missing for nearly two years. I find out she’s alive only a few weeks ago. After waiting for weeks without hearing from her, I rush to see her only to find out that without anyone telling me she has a baby and is marrying her boss to avoid the military being embarrassed that they didn’t rescue her from a baby factory.”

“Mark!”

“Where the hell is my future brother-in-law anyway?”

“He’s on a mission. It’s his last off… it’s his last covert mission and then they are promoting him to General. That’s why we have to get married in the next few weeks, because he’d go back to being my CO at that point. Originally it was six months and just to keep his status as honorably discharged but General Hammond is being promoted and the President wants Jack to head up the program.”

“And what does Dad have to say about all this?”

“I don’t know.” Sam said sadly.

“What do you mean you don’t know?” He demanded.

“The people he works for have him in a deep cover mission. He doesn’t even know we were missing.” Sam said sadly.

“Oh, that’s great. Dad is going to just _love_ this one, Sam.” He said sarcastically.

“You think I don’t know that?” She huffed angrily. “You think this isn’t the most messed up situation I’ve been in since I had to sneak away to leave Jonas? At least Jack loves me. Why isn’t that enough for either of you?”

“You were going to say official… so I take it he’ll have unofficial missions.” Mark said, changing tactics.

Had she? No, she’d almost said off-world but it was as good a cover as any. “Jack is on a covert mission. I can’t explain the details but it’s why Daniel was at the house with Harm and Gibbs. Teal’c is with Jack trying to find someone we need to catch.”

“Same guy?”

“Different guy.” Sam told him, knowing he meant the reason for their last mission. “We’d have all gone but obviously I had to stay home so we added some people and split up the team, I’m heading up the domestic side of the mission.”

“Then what happens to you?”

“Then I go back on the mission roster. Lonnie is Gracie’s live-in nanny.”

“Just gonna leave your kid home just like dad did, huh?”

Sam had a very strong urge to flatten her brother. This was nothing like her father leaving them. “Jack will be available at all times. He--”

Mark waved her off. “Whatever, Sam. She’ll just be another screwed up kid whose parents are never home.”

Sam rounded on him. “How dare you! Do you think this is how we wanted things? Do you think this was planned or something? Jack and I are doing our best to not screw this up in spite of how ridiculous the situation is. You have a lot of nerve judging us when all you have ever done is run away when you couldn’t handle things.”

“Well, it’s better than being dad’s lap dog!”

“Coward!”

“Kissup!”

“Loser!”

“Nerd!” 

Sam snorted with mirth. “That’s geek to you, freakazoid.” She told him.

“I’m a freak? Have you looked in the mirror, stretch?” Mark’s voice was now also touched with mirth.

“Bonehead.” Sam finally called him.

“It’s genetic.” He agreed. “I’m sorry I yelled at you, Sam. I thought you died.”

Sam nodded in understanding. “Daniel does that to us at least every other year.”

“I’d ask what the hell you guys do that Daniel keeps dying on you but I’m not sure I want to know.”

“I’d have to kill you if I told you.”

“All right, it’s too damn cold out. Was there really pizza or was that your weird friend’s way of being nosey?”

“Probably both.” Sam admitted.

Mark nodded. “Did you let Pete know?”

“We only went on a couple dates. It wasn’t serious.” Sam told him.

“He seemed pretty serious.” Mark told her.


	6. Chapter 6

Jack, now scruffy with several days facial hair, sat on the edge of town watching people go in and out of the gate set in the high stone wall. They had arrived on the planet a few days ago and kept a low profile. “On the up side, they are just letting anyone through.” He said to Harry and Teal’c.

“What is not the up side?”

“I think we better hide that.” Jack said, pointing to Teal’c’s forehead.

“We could fake a head injury.” Harry said.

Jack nodded. It was a good plan. For realism, he’d shank Harry and apply said blood to the bandages for effect. He grinned evilly at the other man.

Harry, noticing Jack’s expression, backed away.

Teal’c however ignored them both and cut a shallow wound in his own forehead. Even without a symbiote, he’d heal quickly enough. While the blood was still dripping, he wrapped a strip of fabric around his head quickly so some of the blood would soak through and tied off the ends. “Is this sufficient, O’Neill?”

Jack nodded. 

“So tell me about this Gibbs guy you left Sam with, Jack?” Harry asked him.

“Naval Intelligence. Knows his shit... Owns a boat…” Jack said vaguely as he watched more people pour in and out of the town. “There’s our guys.” He said and handed Harry the binoculars. They were up on a hill dug in under some shrubs.

“Yah, those look like the guys.” Harry agreed. “So are we just going to follow them?”

“Let’s let them get nice and settled first. They got weapons rules going in?”

“Not that I know of.” Harry said.

“That never means anything.” Jack told him, aggravated.

* * *

Two days nearly on the dot, Cassie showed up at the Craftsman her uncle had owned longer than she’d lived on this planet. The door was open so she just came in. “Aunt Sam! Whose car is... oh hi Uncle Mark!” She said excitedly to the balding man she found in the kitchen. 

“Cassie! Sam told me you were coming for a visit.” She’d told him after she’d introduced him formally to his new niece.

“That your car?”

“Which one?”

“The other one is Uncle Daniel’s. Aunt Sam told me some of the guys were helping her and Uncle Jack with a case.”

“Not the usual guys.” Mark said.

“Huh.”

“Your aunt Sam is in the den with Daniel and the baby.”

“Cool. Is Aunt Nancy here too?”

“Yah, she took the kids to the park.”

“Think Lisa might want to be a junior bridesmaid?”

Mark grinned. “She might.”

“So how mad at her were you?”

“What?”

“For ditching that guy you set her up with for Uncle Jack.”

Mark gave her a hard look.

“What, you think we don’t talk?” She made a rude noise with her lips and headed for the den, grabbing an apple on her way, and biting into it.

Mark shook his head. Sam seemed to collect family. Sometimes he thought she liked Daniel more than she did him… but Daniel probably didn’t get on her ass about who she slept with either. 

* * *

“Where’s my new favorite cousin?” Cassie said, holding her arms out to the baby, as she made a beeline to Gracie. She had only met Gracie once but they had bonded instantly. 

Daniel chuckled and handed Gracie over. “She’s going to be so spoiled with attention by the time Jack gets home she won’t have missed him at all.” 

“Nonsense. You can’t spoil babies and Gracie won’t forget her father. It’s the first thing babies learn, their parents’ smells and voices.” Lonnie said, coming into the room. “Let me know if she needs changing. I feel like Sam is paying me to hang out lately.” She admitted.

“Hi Lonnie. Want to help me plan the wedding?” Cassie said grinning.

“I think I’d be as much good at it as your aunt is.” Lonnie admitted.

“That bad, huh?” Cassie said as she bounced Gracie. “That’s okay. Your mommy and daddy will have the daughter of the wedding master planning their wedding.” Cassie said to the baby in a sing-song voice. 

Daniel chuckled. “Janet did have a knack for setting up quickie weddings.”

“She what? Why?” Lonnie asked, confused.

“We uh… kind of had a few incidents. It was just quicker to have someone be transferred and get married then come back with a join-spouse then it was to keep shuffling crew.” Daniel said with a shrug. He looked thoughtful for a moment. “I wonder why she never suggested it to Jack and Sam.”

“She did.” Sam said quietly as she came into the room. 

“There you are.” Cassie said and handed Lonnie the baby so she could hug Sam tightly.

“She tried to talk you guys into a quickie wedding?” Daniel asked.

Sam nodded and blushed a little. “It was a long time ago.” She said.

Daniel looked at her thoughtfully. Had Janet suggested it too soon or had they been denied, he wondered. And why had neither of his best friends ever mentioned it to him? 

“Well, let’s get this over with. What do you need from me so I can delegate this?” Sam asked Cassie briskly.

Daniel handed Cassie a steno pad and a pen without a word. He knew Sam would have a list. Cassie took it and sat on the edge of the couch.

Sam paced holding Gracie. “A dress, obviously I guess. A venue, a minister.”

“A cake.” Daniel pointed out.

“Oh yah, a cake. Dark chocolate, something simple. I don’t care what it looks like really and Jack will only care what it tastes like.”

Cassie chuckled. “What colors were you thinking?”

“What color do you like?”

“Sam, it’s not up to me.”

“Oh, yes it is. You’re the maid of honor. Pick something you like.”

Cassie shrugged. “Flowers?”

“Minimal and um… fake. Daniel is allergic.”

Daniel gave her a smile of thanks.

“Okay, I’ll call Tammy and see what we can cook up.” Cassie said.

“Tammy?”

“Tammy Harriman.”

“Walter’s wife? Why would you call Walter’s wife?”

“She was friends with mom and is super creative. If anyone can get this shindig off the ground in… how long did you say I had?”

“Four weeks.” Sam said softly.

“Seriously? Yikes. Okay, four weeks. That’s cutting it close, Aunt Sam, even for you guys.”

“Yah, yah, I know.” She grumbled. “But we weren’t given any choice.”

“No, no, I get it, but I’m definitely calling Tammy now, especially if we have to get you an off the rack dress, Aunt Sam.”

Sam sighed and shook her head. She didn’t even know if she’d be in town next week. 

“It’s fine. Really.” Cassie told her and started making notes. She’d see what colors Lisa liked, see if she could talk Walter into getting the SGC staff to bake the cake and the base chaplain to marry them. Cassie tapped her pen on her chin thoughtfully. 

Kissing Cassie on the head as a way of thanking her, Sam handed the baby back to Lonnie and went back to the kitchen to make more calls. 

Daniel and Cassie exchange a look. “I haven’t seen her this stressed out in a long time.” Cassie admits.

“Not since the time…”

“That’s the one.” Cassie stops him. Really any time Jack is in danger qualifies but Ba’al was the topper. Also Daniel wasn’t supposed to be able to remember any of that. Had something changed or had Teal’c just filled him in? 

Lonnie looked at them both curiously and walked out with the baby, seemingly uninterested in the conversation or knowing it was classified.

* * *

“So how long did they know each other again?” Jack was asking Harry as they joined the line of merchants and others entering the town.

“From what I could find, they met as kids, went to the same grade school.”

“Was it a school for snakes?”

Harry nodded his head a few times in agreement.

“And you didn’t go there?” Jack asked him.

“Jack…” Harry’s tone was injured.

“Silence, both of you.” Teal’c told them. “ _Tak mal tiak, tap pikate in’trom_.”[1] He said to a guard.

The guard looked the three of them up and down. “ _Pikate te kra aab’t_.”[2] he said dismissively. 

“ _Joma_.”[3] Teal’c said to Harry and Jack and strode forward. 

“He answered Teal’c in Goa’uld, Harry.” Jack hissed at the other man.

Harry shrugged. “Well, he asked him to enter in Goa’uld.” Harry whined.

“ _Rin lop!_ ”[4] Teal’c barked at them.

“Sorry.” Jack hissed and jabbed Harry with an elbow.

Teal’c gave them both a ‘stop being childish’ look.

“We will find lodging then search for our quarry.” Teal’c told them having assumed lead in both word and action.

Harry canted his mouth thoughtfully and nodded his head. Jack just bit the inside of his cheek so he wouldn’t slap the man who had a lead on their missing Trust flunkies. “Come on, I know a place that’s cheap.’ Harry said and lead them towards a seedier part of the town. The irony being it was likely their sell outs had probably gone to the same part of town.

* * *

“I’m going to have fleas when we leave Harry.” Jack said of their accommodations.

Harry shrugged. “I’m going to go look for these guys, try to figure out which way they went.”

After he left, Jack, who had flopped on one of the beds, looked up at the stained ceiling and noticed some kind of lizards copulating. “Charming.” He said.

“Indeed.” Teal’c agreed.

[1] Greetings, we wish to enter

[2] Go to the inside

[3] Follow

[4] Silence both (of you)!


	7. Chapter 7

“I got one.” Gibbs said to Sam, bounding up the basement stairs.

“Oh?”

“Guy by the name of Mike Tallas. Remembers the murder. Says he had a buddy that swore he saw something but the guy disappeared a while after.” Gibbs reached over and grabbed one of the cookies on the platter on the kitchen table.

“A second murder?” Sam asked him, deciding not to tell him those were lactation cookies.

“No way to tell yet. We’ll have to meet him in West Virginia.”

Sam nodded. “I’ll get us a flight out to North Central.”

Gibbs nodded and bit into his cookie. “‘These are pretty good.” He said around his mouthful.

Daniel came in. “Everyone going?”

“Harm should stay here in case Jack and Teal’c get lucky in their hunt or need something but yah. The three of us, Lonnie, and Gracie.” Sam told him.

“I’ll get us some hotel rooms while you book the flights.” Daniel told Sam.

She nodded and smiled her thanks before grabbing her cell. 

“He’s just outside of Bridgeport.” Gibbs told Daniel.

“Great, we can take the hotel shuttle from the airport then and just have a car dropped off.”

“Civilian.” Sam reminded Daniel as he walked out of the kitchen knowing otherwise he’d order a government issue from the motor pool that any nervous former military could spot like a cop at a drug deal.

Gibbs gave her an appreciative look. She was smart but she was sneaky too. Reminded him of Caitlin a bit really. He’d taken this assignment partially to get over her loss. Ari would pay for what he’d done… Gibbs shook his head. “Is it a good idea to take the baby?”

Sam shrugged. “I either have to bring her with me or stay home and I can’t head up this investigation if I stay home.” She tucked a tuft of hair behind her ear. She supposed she’d have to cut it shortly after the wedding which was a shame. She liked her hair long but the Air Force did not.

“All right. I’ll see if I can dig anyone else up while you set up our flights.” He snagged another cookie and left the kitchen.

Sam shook her head in amusement. He really did remind her a bit of Jack, even down to the haunted expression in his eyes sometimes.

* * *

“Hey… what about the…?”

“Not a problem.” Sam told him as they approached the ticket counter to check their bags.

“Do you have anything to declare?” The Steward asked them in a bored voice.

“Nothing.” Sam said and handed over the tickets and their collected IDs, all of which were military issue except Lonnie’s.

They moved along to the TSA line and waited for their turn. It was early enough that the line was reasonable for a change. Sam pulled a chain from around her neck and put it in the tray with her purse. A sapphire glinted between diamonds off a ring on the chain. 

The carry-on bags go through and one of the TSA agents looks oddly at the Zat in one of their bags then notices there’s three of them. Gibbs watches them for a bit as Sam and Daniel walk through the metal detector that remains silent for both of them. When the agent calls over another agent and points at the odd folded shape, Gibbs pipes up. “That’s the backup for my ED pump.”

Daniel goggles and Sam just tilts her head back and grabs her neck, trying desperately to regain control of her facial expression. Behind Gibbs, Lonnie and a few other passengers giggle and snort.

“Yah let’s go with that.” Sam says.

The TSA agent gives Gibbs a hard look. He returns it with one of pointed ‘dare me to explain further’. They were waved forward after the scanner doesn’t blip on him either.

Lonnie walked through with the baby and follows the rest of them, shaking her head. She wasn’t sure what she’d expected taking this job but she had to admit it wasn’t this.

* * *

Once their luggage was stowed, they settled into their seats at the rear of the plane. Daniel sat next to the window, with Gibbs on the aisle where he could see the entire length of the cabin. Sam sat in front of Gibbs, and Lonnie sat in the window seat. After take-off, Sam raised the arms between her and Lonnie’s seats so it would be easier for the two of them to move little Gracie between them. For now, though, Sam settled back to nurse Gracie, who was still fussy from the air pressure changes during take-off.

Gibbs had planted himself firmly in his seat, leaned back, and closed his eyes. It was thinking time for him, and he looked forward to the flight for no other reason than to mentally review all the information they had so far. Contrary to his relaxed appearance, he was completely aware of all the activity in the cabin of the plane. That meant he was aware that Daniel was staring at him.

“What?” he stabbed at Daniel, using his Gunny voice, hoping to make him uncomfortable enough to leave him alone.

Daniel had spent too much time with Jack to be put off by a little boss-man attitude. “Sorry, Gibbs. I was just wondering… I mean, Jack seemed to know you, and I.... well, he never said, so I think, maybe... where do you and Jack know each other from?”

Gibbs’ mouth turned down before he could completely blank his face. “Is that important?”

Sam, hearing Daniel ask the question she’d wanted the answer to since Gibbs first walked into the house, leaned toward the edge of her seat so she could hear Gibbs’ answer. It wasn’t really eavesdropping, she justified, after all, they knew she was there and Gibbs no doubt knew she could hear everything.

“Yes, I think it is,” Daniel responded. “We know Jack trusts you, and that’s enough for us. But I do think it’s important. How would an Air Force special ops guy and a marine know each other? Specifically Jack, because he doesn’t trust easily or just anyone and quite frankly I can’t see that you’re that different from most people. So?”

Gibbs leaned forward in his seat, his elbows on the arms of his chair, his head bent. He knew there was a lot of the story he couldn’t tell, but he decided to give them what he could, and what he thought Jack wouldn’t object to their knowing.

“We met on a mission during the Gulf.” He leaned his head back and relaxed again, eyes closed.

“And? So? Therefore?” Daniel prodded with Jack’s usual ‘spit it out’ expression.

Gibbs opened his eyes. “I can’t tell you much more than that. I was assigned to a mission that went sideways. Jack’s team pulled me out, but I don’t remember much. I was in a coma for 19 days.”

“Okay, I get that you can’t tell us about the mission, but that still doesn’t tell us _how_ you and Jack know each other.”

“The op was right after I heard that my wife and daughter were killed.” His words were clipped.

“Oh,” said Daniel, taken aback and feeling a little sick to his stomach. “I did not know. I’m sorry.”

“Retired. Went to work for the Naval Investigative Service.” Gibbs finished, making that statement a period to end Daniel’s questions.

Sam, who had passed a sleeping Gracie off to Lonnie, turned around as far as she could and said softly, “Jack may have saved your butt during the Gulf, but that’s not how you know him, is it?”

Gibbs was silent for a minute, then ground out. “It was after Jack lost his son. We ran into each other in DC.”

He unbuckled his seatbelt, stood, and went to the back. There’s not a lot of places to hide on a plane, but he found the obvious one, slammed the door shut and rammed home the “Occupied” bar.

Sam and Daniel looked at each other for a long moment. Sam’s gut feelings about Gibbs being a lot like Jack had been dead on. He had more in common with Jack then she’d known.

“I didn’t know.” Daniel said under his breath.

Sam gave him a sympathetic look. She hadn’t either when she’d chirped about being an auntie at Jack years ago. Thankfully, it hadn’t been Jack so he had no memory of her making an ass of herself just to make conversation with her cute new CO. She shrugged.

Daniel sighed and picked his book back off his lap. 

Lonnie gave Sam a concerned look. “He seemed mad.”

Sam huffed a sigh out her nose. “Jack lost his son before he joined the unit we are in now.” Sam would bet a dollar he and Gibbs met during mandatory grief counseling at the VA.

“Oh.” Was all Lonnie said.

* * *

After they de-planed and rented a car, having decided to opt out of the sketchy looking hotel shuttle service, they drove to the hotel. Gibbs dropped his bag and left to meet the man who had information about a murder, leaving the rest to do a little research on their own.

Sam, Lonnie, and Daniel set up the rented port-a-crib from the hotel then sat down to wait. Sam had brought a deck of cards and they were using fish crackers from the convenience store around the corner to keep score.

Mike Tallas lived in a run down trailer park, on the edge of a run down area of town. The dirt road dead ended at the trailer park, and Gibbs could see a sad row of trailers that had seen better days. Tallas’ place was at the end. An old, battered van with an open trailer like you see lawn guys use was pulled up to the side.

Gibbs parked the rental in the sparse grass next to the dirt road in front and unbuckled the seat belt. As he got out of the car, his eyes, behind their concealing sunglasses, swept the area for any indication someone else might be watching. He didn’t see anything of concern, in fact the area was dead other than a one-eyed brown cat staring baleful at him from the top of a small shed about two trailers away, so he stepped on the wooden steps in front of the door and knocked. He stepped back down to the dirt, and away from the door.

The door screeched on its hinges as it opened, and an old, overweight balding man in a Mountaineers’ football tee and sweatpants grunted out, “You Gibbs?”

Gibbs flashed his credentials, not giving the man time to really look at them. “Agent Gibbs. Are you Mike Tallas?”

“Yup. Come on in.” Tallas stepped into the dark room enough for Gibbs to follow him, “Wanna beer? Got plenty.” 

“No, thanks.” 

“Well then, do you mind if I have one? Just got in from my job and showered a bit so I wouldn’t stink.” He motioned toward the couch, “Let’s sit.”

Gibbs looked over the room Tallas took a beer from the fridge and opened it. It looked like someone was at least attempting to keep it clean. The aging kitchen cabinet tops were cleared and wiped.

Once Tallas pulled a chair around to face Gibbs, he sat and took a slow pull of his beer. Nodding toward Gibbs, he said, “I understand you have some questions about a murder that happened a long time ago. Man, those were the days!” He shook his head and smiled.

If those were the days, Gibbs knew he was going to hear a long story. He’d met guys like Tallas before, decent guys who went through life never amounting to much, but never doing anything particularly bad. He said in his best buddy voice, “Mr. Tallas, I appreciate your time. My investigator didn’t have many details, Why don’t you tell me what happened from the beginning.” My investigator is a shady piece of trash I wouldn’t trust further than I could throw him.

Thirty minutes later, Gibbs knew that Tallas was proud of having been in the Air Force and passed OTS. He’d married after that, had a family, and dropped out of school to have more time for his kids. Since he hadn’t finished his degree, he left the service (a nice way of saying he was pushed out, Gibbs thought) and owned a couple of small lawn businesses. His wife had died a few years back, and his kids were on their own, so here he was.

“But that’s all about me. I guess you want to know about that murder.” 

“That is why I’m here.”

Tallas stood. “Just a minute. I have something to show you about that.” He left the room and came back bearing a huge photo album. He grinned. “I know, I know. You aren’t interested in my kids’ baseball trophies, but there is something in here you might be interested in.” He started flipping pages, talking at the same time.

“We hadn’t been there very long. We were all just getting to know each other and the instructors.” He stopped and pointed to a picture. “That’s my son. Third grade. Good kid.” He flipped more pages. “Anyway, as I was saying, we were just getting to know each other. One Saturday night a group of us took off to one of the local taverns, ya know what I mean?” He stopped. “That’s my daughter. Fifth grade.” He said continued his story. “Anyway, some of the girls there were pretty wild, and some were just pretty. Most of them didn’t want much to do with us, so we drank our way through the offerings, ya know?” He flipped more pages. “That is, me and this group of guys did. There was this one kid though, he couldn’t have been more than twenty, awful young to be in OTS if you ask me. The bartender wasn’t too good about checking IDs back in those days, ya know what I mean?”

“I do,” Gibbs nodded. He hated people that just droned on and on, and Tallas was getting on his last nerve. He ground his teeth and reminded himself every now and then Tallas dropped a bit of information. “Go on.”

Tallas flipped another couple of pages. Gibbs groaned inwardly. “So this one night, the kid got sicker ‘n a dog. I pulled over and shoved him out the door and he ran toward the bushes. Maybe not running. His legs and arms were going all kinds of directions.” Tallas laughed at the memory. “Kid was drunker than a skunk. I went back in when I heard him barfing. Just couldn’t stand the smell, ya know? God, that kid! Worst barf smell ever. Worse than my kids. Smelled like he’d eaten a goat fur and all.” He turned another page. “Ah, here.”

Gibbs looked at the upside down photos of the OTS class. “So, the kid said he saw something?”

Tallas nodded. “Yup. He stumbled back to the car seemed like about half an hour later but it was probably only a few minutes and said he thought he’d seen a coupl’a guys hiding a body or something, then passed out cold on the back seat floor. Hey, I thought he had to be hallucinating, drunk as he was, but the next day the papers were full of some girl gone missing. She’d been at the same bar with her friends. Imagine that!”

“Yeah, imagine that. What happened to the kid? Did he remember anything?’

Tallas shook his head. “I don’t know. The next day he was so hung over he didn’t say much. Looked pretty grey. I wasn’t so hot myself, ya see? The next week I saw him reading some letter and he freaked out. Not too long after that he transferred or something. Anyway, I never heard anything about him again.”

“Did they find the girl?” Gibbs asked, even though he knew the answer.

“Nah, don’t think so. The family finally gave up looking not long after she disappeared. Heard the parents died in the ‘80s and any surviving siblings left soon after.”

“Do you know the name of the kid?” Gibbs asked. That was really why he was there. He, no, they, had to find that kid.

“Don’t remember his name. We called Johnny or kid, or something.” He shook his head. “But I do have a picture. See? This guy,” he said, pointing to the youngest in the group of gangly young men. “You can have the picture if you want it.”

Gibbs was staring at the picture. Oh yes, he definitely wanted that picture. “Yes, I would.” 

Tallas pulled the picture from the album and handed it to Gibbs, who was standing up. “Here ya go, then. Glad I could help. It’s been a long time. Man, those were the days!”

Gibbs smiled and put the picture in his jacket pocket and patted it for safety. “Thank you, Mr. Tallas. We appreciate your help.”

Later, driving back to the hotel, he couldn’t help a smile. He wondered if Sam and Daniel would want to order in pizza.

* * *

“So how did you do?” Sam asked Gibbs, looking up from her hand and tapping the pile of cards on the table with a finger. 

“Pretty good. Got a name, sort of, and a photo which should help more. We could check the yearbooks for that class, see if we can narrow things down. He said the guy transferred out though so we might strike out there.”

“We’d know what year he’d graduate though so as long as he stayed in, a name narrows things down.” Daniel said.

Gibbs looked at him. So Dr. Jones was useful after all. “It should help.” He agreed and handed Daniel the photo Tallas had given him.

Daniel looked at it for a moment then walked away to his suitcase where he dug around a little then came back. He placed the photo on the table and looked at it through a magnifying lens.

Sam, whose eyes were sharper, looked over his shoulder.

“Daniel… that’s….”

“Yup.”

“Oh boy.”

“I take it you know the guy?”

“Yah, you could say that.” Sam says and bites her lip. Johnny who claimed to see two guys burying a body while vomiting his ill-conceived combination of imbibed substances in the bushes was a gawky nearly twenty year old Jack O’Neill.


	8. Chapter 8

“This is ridiculous, Harry.” Jack hissed.

“Keep it down.” Harry hissed back.

They were in an incredibly seedy bar watching their quarry.

“Someone’s missing, I can’t figure out who.” Harry admitted under his breath.

“Well you better figure out where they are.” Jack loud whispered to be heard over the hum of conversation by the other man.

“Look I’m not their mom, I can’t keep track of everything.” Harry argued. He’d spent two days lurking in seedy alleys and dives trying to figure out their pattern of movements. He’d finally narrowed it down and was able to show up at the bar a little before the guys. “Why don’t we wait and see if he shows up.”

A large hand descended on Harry’s shoulder and a familiar voice rumbled in Jack’s ear. “Or you boys could tell me what you are doing on a Lucian Alliance controlled world without my daughter.” He said affable.

Harry stiffened. Jack sighed. “Dad.” Was all Jack said.

“Jack. Fancy meeting you here.” Jacob was dressed similarly to Jack, Teal’c and Harry in local linen clothing of an indiscriminate shade of grey. He snagged a nearby chair with his foot and slid it over to block Harry in just in case he planned to escape. 

“How long have you been shadowing us, Dad?” Jack asks in seeming disinterest. 

“Oh… a while…” He waves vaguely. “Where’s Sam?”

Anyone else would have missed Jack’s wince.

“Jack…”

“Home, Dad.” Jack said, his tone short.

“Okay… why?”

Jack huffed out a sigh, frowned and looked upward as his shoulders dropped. Dad was going to kill him either way but he didn’t want to lose track of their targets. “Later, Dad.” He finally said.

“We aren’t done here.” Jacob warned him.

“I know, Dad, but I’m kind of doing something here.”

“They are leaving.” Teal’c informed them.

“Wanna bag and tag now? Harry asked.

“Wait until they leave the city. It will be easier on the open road.” Jacob suggested.

Jack bit back his sarcastic ‘thanks Dad, I’ve never run an op before knocking up your daughter’ reply. Instead he just nodded agreement. 

They shadowed the four men in question out of the low ceilinged tavern into the cool evening air.

“You boys go back to your room. I’ll keep an eye on these guys until they get ready to leave town.” Jacob told them.

“Jack…”

Jack waved Harry off. “He’s Tok’ra, Harry. If anyone can keep track of them, it’s him.”

“It’s just…” 

“Harry?” Jack said it slowly and noticed Harry’s cringe. “All right, spill it.” He ordered the other man after Jacob left.

“Look, it’s not like—”

“Harry! Spit it out!”

“Well, I didn’t exactly tell you everything.”

“Why am I not surprised.” Jack said in frustration. “You better tell me now because if I find out later I’m going to be really pissed.” Teal’c hovered over Harry for emphasis. They were still in an ally on the way back to their room.

“The Trust is in cahoots with the Lucian Alliance.” Harry finally told them.

“How did you find out about those guys?”

“I read your trial transcript.” Harry admitted.

Jack’s redacted trial transcript. “So? And therefore?” letting the obvious problem go.

“They seemed familiar. They were moving in on the vacuum you guys have been leaving as you bump off system lords. I had some of my contacts look into it.” Harry hedged.

“Harry…” Jack growled. The other man was clearly still holding something back.

“I think I know where our missing guy is.” Harry admitted.

“Where, Harry?”

“We need to gate to Orbistus.”

“We just _left_ Orbistus.” Jack yelled at him.

“Look, I know that, but it’s tied to the Lucian Alliance selling babies and—” Jack shook him.

“Why is the Trust involved in selling babies? They steal tech!” Jack shook Harry again.

“They weren’t looking for just any baby.” Harry admitted with a gulp.

“It is Major Carter’s baby they seek.” Teal’c said.

“Not Sam’s.” Jack said.

“Your ancient gene is pretty valuable Jack.” Harry told him.

Jack looked like he was going to be sick. “And we left her home.”

“She is not alone, O’Neill.”

“Danny isn’t going to be there twenty four seven, Teal’c.” Jack said, clearly pissed.

“I do not refer to Doctor Jackson.”

“What?” Jack asks him, risking a glance at the larger man who gives Harry a menacing scowl.

Jack turns and looks at Harry. “What else?” He demands.

“The nanny is CIA.” His hands pop up in supplication. “Hammond knows about it. We thought Sam needed a bodyguard but didn’t want to alarm her.”

Jack shook Harry then dropped him. “If anything happens to either of them while I’m gone I’m shooting you, Maybourne.” He said in an almost casual tone. “And not in the arm!”

Harry, for his part, straightened his clothes. “Can we go back to our room now?” He whined.

Jack grunted and stalked back to their lodging, still furious that Sam and Gracie were in danger because that no good slimy weasel hadn’t told him everything he needed to know.

A hand descended on Jack’s shoulder.

“What?!” Jack snarled.

“Had you known, you would not have left them for this mission.”

“Of course I wouldn’t have left them, Teal’c. It’s Sam and our baby!”

“That is why Hammond ordered Maybourne not to inform you unless it was necessary.”

“You knew?”

“I suspected.”

“Great.” Jack snarled again and stalked off. “That’s just great.”

Teal’c turned a baleful eye to Harry. “If there is other information pertinent to this operation, you will tell O’Neill immediately.” He ordered the other man.

Harry bobbed his head a few times. “Absolutely.” He agreed quickly.

“We will return to our lodging until General Carter returns for us.” He told Harry and made sure that Harry proceed him on their way.

* * *

Several hours later, Jack heard Jacob make a hissing noise outside their door. He rolled off the bed to his feet in a somewhat smooth motion, his bad knee still giving him problems. “Time to disco.” He told the other two men absently. Years ago, Teal’c wouldn’t have understood the reference. Now he simply nodded.

They skirted the outside of the city to avoid their target noticing them specifically among the other late night wanderers. “We’ll meet up with Dad outside the gate.” Jack told Teal’c and Harry.

Teal’c gave Jack a short nod. 

Harry was on the verge of asking Jack why General Carter was ‘dad’ when they had to duck down to avoid being seen. “The other guy must have gone ahead.” He said thoughtfully.

“He’s going to notice his buddies missing.” Jack pointed out.

“He doesn’t know them that well. We could try to disguise ourselves.” Harry suggested.

“Do you think this is Star Trek?” Jack asked him.

“It was just a thought.”

“A stupid thought.” Teal’c told Harry.

“You have any better ideas?”

“Literally anything.” Jack told him.

Five minutes after their targets left the town, Jack, Harry and Teal’c slipped out past the sleeping guards. They stayed by the wall until Jacob joined them and silently signaled them to follow him. They moved off silently into a copse of trees.

“They set up camp about a mile from the Gate. We’ll wait until they bed down, Teal’c can take out their watchman, you two handle two of the others. I’ll handle whoever’s left.” Jacob told the others.

Jack wondered when his father-in-law took ownership of this op and if that meant the Tok’ra were taking the blame if it went sideways. That didn’t seem like their usual MO. “What’s going on, Dad?”

“We’re after the same guys, Jack. There’s a cell of Lucian Alliance that is black marketing babies. I’m trying to get the guys at the top.”

“Londaris isn’t running the baby ring.”

Jacob turned slowly and looked at Jack in the darkness. “You want to tell me how you know who the administrator of the Orbistus rehabilitation center is or why he’s not involved?”

“We have some catching up to do.” Jack hedged. 

“Jack….”

“Not right _now_ , Dad.” Jack ground out. He really did not want to talk about this with Jacob until after they bagged these guys.

“Londaris helped O’Neill gain an acquittal.”

“ _Thanks_... Teal’c” Jack said with gritted teeth which earned him a short bow and an ‘I’m screwing with you intentionally’ smile from Teal’c.

“What were you on trial for Jack? And so help me if it’s sleeping with my daughter I will kill you.” Jacob saw Jack flinch at the reason and lunged at Jack. “We made a deal, Jack!” He growled at him as Jack dodged and hid behind Teal’c.

“Dad, I can explain I swear. Teal’c was there. He’d never lie to you, he can verify everything I tell you.”

“Uh, guys, I hate to break up this family tête-à-tête but don’t we have a job to do?” Harry cut in.

“I hate to admit it but the idiot is right.” Jacob says. He glares at Jack for a moment then scoots out from the copse of trees and silently works his way down the road.

Jack huffs out a sigh. “Thanks a lot, T.”

“You must tell him, O’Neill. He will find out when we deliver our quarry to the SGC.”

“I know I know but timing, big guy. Timing.”

“Indeed.” Was all Teal’c said in reply.

Half an hour later, they were in position. Teal’c who while the largest was also the most stealthy was slowly creeping up on the lookout who was dozing on a log by the fire. 

Jack and Harry rushed the tent when Teal’c silently zatted his prey. 

Jacob, being older and wiser, just cut the back of the tent with a knife and punched one of the men with a satisfying crunch. Harry accidentally woke his guy up which woke up Jack’s leading to a muffled struggle in the dark. Jacob tried to get a bead on either of the struggling men but both Harry and Jack kept getting in the way. Finally in exasperation after Jack got his man into a headlock, he punched the man whose eyes rolled up in his head and he went down.

Both men turned on Harry who was still struggling to get a handle on the situation. Jacob tripped him when he squirmed away from Harry and Jack zatted the guy.

“Well that went well.” Jack said sarcastically, looking at Harry with his brows down in exasperation.

“He was a light sleeper.” Harry insisted.

“Kids…” Jacob said.

“Stay out of this, Dad. This pain in the ass has been a thorn in my side for years.”

“You can talk about it when we get them back to earth.”

“We need to question them first.”

“Fine, do you have a base of operations?”

“See, I told you we’d need a secure location. We’ve got one.” Harry assured Jacob.

Teal’c was busy tying up and gagging the Trust flunkies.

“Great. Let’s get them out of here. Everyone drag a prisoner.” Jacob grunted as he threw one of the men over his shoulder and started walking.

“I’m dragging mine.” Harry muttered.

“Don’t care. Just grab one and let’s get going.” Jacob said over his shoulder.

Jack, knowing his knee would never survive, helped Teal’c lash two guys together and used their tent poles and part of the damaged canvas to sling them over their shoulders between Jack and Teal’c. Harry was left with a pair of poles and some rope so made an impromptu travois and dragged his prisoner. 

They reached the Gate sweaty and covered in dust that vaguely matched their clothing so they all looked grey and nondescript, even Teal’c.

“Dial us out, Colonel.” Jacob ordered Maybourne. 

Harry, for once, did what he was told without the theatrics. 

They dragged and carried their unwanted charges through the blue puddle with them.

* * *

Their base of operations looked less threadbare than the bivouac they had snagged the Trust members from the night before. Teal’c had sat up watching over them while Jack and Jacob went for a walk and Harry crashed for the night.

“Jack…”

Jack sighed. “I know what you’re thinking, Dad, and if you want to punch me go right ahead.”

“What happened?”

“Ah, the Lucian Alliance scooped us up while we were hunting down a minor system lord hiding out around Orbistus. If he didn’t have intel on some of the other guys we wouldn’t have even bothered with him.” Jack’s knowledge of said alliance was severely limited but he’d put together what had probably happened.

Jacob nodded and just let him continue.

“Anyway, they dumped us in the baby factory. We had to beat the crap out of guy to protect Carter from being raped.” Jack stopped talking for a moment, waited for his emotions to settle some. He raked his hand into his filthy hair that was as much dust as it was grey hair. “We spent months trying to figure out how to get out of that place but every plan we cooked up involved risking one of my team getting hurt or killed or sacrificing innocent civilians or some other undesirable outcome.”

“And eventually they found out you weren’t sleeping with her.” Jacob guessed.

“Nah, they found out that was all I was doing with her. Sex with your boss or rape isn’t a choice, Dad. I—”

But Jacob cut him off. It wasn’t that he wasn’t angry, he was, but not at Jack who had only been trying to protect his little girl and it wasn’t like Jacob didn’t know how they felt about each other. He’d known since he’d seen the way Jack looked at Sam the first day they met. “Jack, I know my daughter well enough that if she didn’t want to consent she wouldn’t have.” Jack was already punishing himself far more for this then Jacob ever could have.

Jack sighed. “There’s more, Dad.” He admitted.

“How can there be...” And then it dawned on him. “How far along is she?”

“Your granddaughter was born five weeks ago.” Jack admitted to his soon to be father-in-law. “We’re getting married as soon as I get back. It was one of the conditions of them dropping the conduct unbecoming charge.”

Jacob was silent for a long moment. “How long were you missing?”

“Almost a year and a half.”

“They didn’t even tell me she was missing.” Jacob admitted, realizing again that the Tok’ra had hidden important information from him and Selmak.

“I’m sorry… I…”

“It’s not your fault, Jack. I’m sure George tried to get in touch with me and they put him off. If I’d gone to the facility sooner, I’d have found you before this was a total disaster. I’m getting a little tired of everyone overruling Garshaw.”

Jack nodded. “Do you want to see a picture?”

“You have one?” Jacob’s eyes lit up and not with the light of his symbiote, Selmak. 

Jack grinned a little and fished it out of a pocket close to his heart. It was a photo of a very tired Sam looking lovingly down at a somewhat small baby in her arms. He handed it over. 

“Can I keep this one?”

Jack debated. He kept that photo with the one of Charlie close to his heart for a reason. “Uh…”

“Make me a copy when we get back to Earth.”

Jack imperceptibly sagged with relief. 

Jacob nodded. If Jack needed their photos to keep him going then that’s what he needed. “I don’t think we will find out much from these goons, Jack.”

“Yah but we still gotta check.”

Jacob nodded. “Congratulations.”

“Thanks. That means a lot coming from you, sir.”

“It’s a little late to go back to ‘sir’, Jack.” Jacob admonished him with a chuckle.

“Sorry.” Jack said and his shrug was more relieved than he’d have liked. He hadn’t been this nervous asking Mike for Sara’s hand. He chose not to explore why that was.


	9. Chapter 9

“So in theory it makes more sense just to fly to DC.” Daniel was telling Harm over the phone. He paused for a long moment. “Well, we know who saw it happen but now we need proof they were both in that area at the same time.” He sighed. “Okay, okay.” He hit the speaker phone button.

“Sam, Jack dropped off some Trust guys but they are going after the ringleader of that faction who went on ahead to Orbistus.”

“Let me guess…” Sam said with a sigh.

“Yah, they were tied up in the nonsense with the Lucian Alliance. Um… there was another thing.”

“Oh?”

“Your dad was with them.”

“Where did… oh no… How mad was he?”

“Pretty mad, Sam. I mean I don’t know your dad, but he seemed PO’ed.”

Sam sighed. 

“You’re screwed.” Daniel said gleefully.

“Shut up, Daniel.” She snapped at him but not angrily.

“So where’s Gibbs?”

“Grabbing dinner. Lonnie has a migraine so Daniel and I were trying to fit more of the pieces together.”

“All right. Let me know if any of you need anything on my end. I’m forwarding a private e-mail for you. I swear I didn’t read it.” Harm tells Sam which makes her smile.

“Thanks Harm. I’ll keep you posted and let you know what we find out in DC.” She hung up the phone.

“That’s cute, you know.”

Sam gave Daniel a bland look, pretending not to know what he was talking about. 

“He’s kind of a mush ball under the military crap, you know.” Daniel prompted.

“Daniel.”

“Yah?”

“Shut up.” Sam said with a smile.

* * *

Sam hung up the phone in frustration. “All flights to DC are fully booked.”

Lonnie looked up from changing Gracie. “Why don’t we just drive? It’s only 5 hours, give or take, and between TSA and sitting on the tarmac it would take us that long anyway and we’d have to rent a new SUV when we got there.” She threw it out, trying to sound innocently helpful. The last thing she wanted to have to do is have her handler retrieve her piece and bring it to her in DC. She didn’t like being unarmed.

Sam looked at her thoughtfully. 

“I’m for it.” Gibbs said.

“Shotgun.” Daniel said which made Sam chuckle.

“All right. Let’s pack up and grab some snacks.”

“This is the part where Jack calls us ‘campers’ and Teal’c says indeed.” Daniel told Sam, making her laugh. 

“Say indeed, Lonnie.” Sam ordered her with a grin.

“Indeed.” Lonnie said, trying to mimic Teal’c’s deep baritone and failing with her normally high light voice.

Daniel chuckled. “Close enough. Let’s go.” He went over to his bag and started cramming things in it. “I hate checking baggage anyway.”

* * *

Fifteen minutes into the car ride, Gracie was out cold and Daniel was bored. “Hey Gibbs, how did you meet Harm?” Hoping this conversation goes better than how did you meet Jack.

Or not. Gibbs sat comfortably in the driver’s seat, ignoring the question. Daniel was sure that Gibbs and Jack must be distantly related. “So, did you and Harm meet on the job?” Daniel persisted.

Gibbs looked pointedly at Daniel and then back at the road.

“Harm and Jack both called you, so they must trust you.” Daniel continued. When he didn’t get a response he decided to change tacks. “You three must have met up somewhere.”

“Nope,” Gibbs said laconically.

Daniel perked up. Maybe he was onto something. “What does that mean?” He searched Gibbs’ face for clues.

“Nope.”

Daniel ground his back teeth. Getting information out of Gibbs was worse than tackling Jack for something on a bad day. He sighed, “So, the three of you didn’t meet.” He thought for a minute. He could play word games, too. “Does that mean you met Harm without Jack being there?”

One side of Gibbs’ mouth lifted. He thought Daniel and DiNozzo would get along just fine. “Yep”

Daniel tried to turn in his seat, only to be jerked back by the seat belt. “Damn.”

Gibbs grinned and decided to throw him a bone. “Georgetown.”

Daniel almost glowed, and he motioned with a hand as he talked. “Harm got his degree at Georgetown. You must have met then,” He conjectured, running his fingers through his hair, and sticking his head forward. “Wait. You were in the NIS then, right?” Daniel almost bounced with excitement. “Did you meet him on a case? Wait, he wasn’t JAG then. Were you investigating him?” Both of Daniel's hands were waving excitedly and he nearly knocked over the coffee in the Styrofoam cup Gibbs had placed in the cup holder before they left.

“Nope.” He relented a little when Daniel visibly deflated into his seat. Once again, he reminded himself this was Jack’s team, not his, and Jack had warned him that “Danny-boy” was as tenacious as a Rottweiler. He decided to give him the part that would be in public records. 

“He was at Georgetown finishing up his law degree. I was investigating a murder on the campus. He was one of several people there I interviewed.” He decided to keep to himself that he also interviewed a leggy, blonde USAF Captain who was doing some research at the Lauinger Library at the time of the murder. She obviously didn’t remember it or if she did she was playing that card _very_ close to her chest, and there was no need to mention the brief interview he had with her then fiancé who had since kicked over on a mission. He’d dug a little about the people he’d be working with. It paid to be informed. 

“That's it? You interview him about a murder ten years ago and he trusts you with this?” Daniel asked, disbelieving.

Gibbs glanced at him sideways, barely taking his eyes off the road. “No. We met again a few years ago when he was charged with a murder and I was the investigating officer.”

“Oh! Harm didn’t do it.” Daniel stated, emphatically, jumping immediately to the other man’s defense as Daniel’s loyalties were simple. Harm had saved Jack and, as a result, vicariously helped Sam too, therefore Harm earned his regard.

“No, he didn’t.” Gibbs lifted the coffee cup from the cup holder and made a face after taking a sip. “Cold.” He took another sip. It was caffeine. “We ran into each other several times over the years. He’s a good man to have on your side.”

Gibbs turned the radio on and found an Animals song he could stand to listen to as there didn’t seem to be a ball game on. He was silent for a long time. Daniel figured he’d got all he was going to get so he relaxed in his seat and watched the scenery go by.

“There’s just one thing,” Gibbs intoned. 

Daniel turned toward him. “What’s that?”

“I made sure the backup ED pump is in your bag.”

Daniel ignored Sam’s snort from the back seat.

“Very funny.” Daniel said with a pout. “You know… I don’t miss Jack at all right now.”

Sam held back another snort of mirth. Poor Daniel. If anything, Agent Gibbs was actually worse than Jack. That was saying something. At least _House of the Rising Sun_ was a good pick if a little on the nose considering what they were hoping for Bauer and Kinsey.

The rest of the ride was fairly quiet. Sam worked on a budget report and Daniel was reading something in a language no one else in the van was even remotely familiar with.

They pulled into a low rent DC motel Gibbs had used in the past when he wanted to keep a low profile. “We need to break into Kinsey’s office.” he told them.

“I think I have that covered. I considered pretending to be a secretary requisitioning documents but his staff might recognize me.” Sam said. 

“What have you got in mind, Sam?” Daniel asked.

Sam grinned “How good of an actor are you, Agent Gibbs?”


	10. Chapter 10

Jack sighed. “I did _not_ want to come back here.”

“You wanna catch this guy or not?” Jacob asked him pointedly.

Jack scowled. 

“You don’t happen to still have my suit handy, do you?” 

Jack looked at his soon to be father-in-law like he’d lost his mind.

“I can’t walk my little girl down the aisle in my leathers.” He told the younger man like this was the most pressing concern at the moment.

Jack knew what Jacob was trying to do. He knew Jack had some pretty bad memories of several prisons and this one included. Fussing about the wedding was his way of trying to distract Jack from any PTSD events he might be harboring going right back into the facility he’d narrowly escaped. 

“Jack, you said you know the guy running the show?”

“Name’s Londaris. Any chance you know where he lives?”

“No, but I was thinking we could use the front door.”

“Better yet, we could let his people nab our guy.” Jacob suggested.

“Bad idea, Dad, Londaris said it would take him some time to shift the balance of power. We don’t want the Lucian Alliance guys to tip this guy off or we won’t find him again for years.”

“We could let them kill him themselves for being a liability.” Harry suggested.

Tempting though that was, Jack shook his head. “Hammond said bring him in. We’re bringing him in.”

Teal’c looked from Jack to Harry to Jacob. “Colonel Maybourne may be correct.”

“Yah had to tell him that, didn’t you.” Jack grumbled.

“Come on, let's get this guy before he figures out we’re on to him.” Jacob told them.

Jack nodded, Harry shrugged. Teal’c remained impassive and Jacob rolled his eyes in annoyance.

On the up side, Jack thought as they broke into the facility, at least he knew where he was going. Of course on the down side, he’d seen very little of the administrative areas of the facility and they would need to figure out where this guy was usually working then find some place to wait all day silently until just before the end of workday. Jack wondered if the guy Teal’c had nursed back to health might know. “T.” He hissed at the larger man.

“O’Neill?”

“That guy you helped, what did they have him doing?”

“Due to his injuries, I believe they gave him a cleaning job.” Teal’c told Jack.

“Perfect.” Jack said with a feral grin.

“You guys made a friend, huh?”

“Yah, he’ll get along great with Harry. Same level of class and reliability.” Jack said.

Harry gave Jack an injured look and Jacob snorted in amusement.

Jack led them silently through the darkened facility. There were still guards but generally they weren’t around at night as it was next to impossible to get out of the place. No one ever thought of someone trying to sneak _in_. Their unit was towards the back of the facility. Jack was banking on Takitti staying behind when Bolar and his woman moved on. Sam had been one of the last to get pregnant and by now all the women should have had babies.

“What if someone is in his room?” Jacob signed at Jack.

Jak shook his head. That was pretty unlikely. He was unable to fight for a woman now with his injuries. “T, he likes you, you should probably be the one to try to talk to him.”

“I concur.” Teal’c said and edged out in front to lead them to Takitti’s last known room. Londaris had eliminated most of the night guard in the inside which Jack figured was good for him. Better if he’d already nabbed their stray Trust flunky, but Jack was betting against that. He might be hiding out as a prisoner but that was unlikely. He’d want free movement and guys like him wouldn’t be subtle about that.

Teal’c is discreetly poking his dark nose into doors to figure out where his unusual friend has ended up. He finds him three berths down from his old unit. “Takitti” He rumbles at the man but has his Zat ready just in case.

The other man sat up, startled. He’d been alone as Teal’c and Jack had predicted. His arm still moved stiffly and probably always would. “Teal’c? They took you out. We figured they killed you.” He looks up at the other men and notices Jack.

“They did not.” Teal’c told him. “We are in need of your assistance.”

“I’m not sure what good I am, guys. How did you even get in?”

“That is irrelevant. We need to know where we might hide in the administrative quadrant of this facility.”

“There’s a ventilation system going to all the office type rooms, it’s big enough that a man can fit in it.”

“How do we enter this system?”

“You know they got rid of most of the guards and moved all the violent guys out of the main blocks. Asked the girls which ones liked to rape and carted them off. Left the rest of us alone. Told us from now on, the girls would be picking their men and if they didn’t like him, she could leave or switch up. That was after the rotation though. I want my wife back but I’m no good to her now.”

Jack gave the man a sympathetic look. He’d been a thief in his past life. His partner had decided the man’s wife was his for the taking. Hopefully, the next cycle they would let them be together again… or Jack could leave Londaris a note in exchange for his missing employee. “Got any paper?” He asked Takitti.

“Uh, sure, why?”

“No reason. Just need to write a letter to a friend so he doesn’t worry about a buddy of ours.” Jack said companionably.

“Do we really have time for that, Jack?” Harry asks him warily.

“I’m making time. This is important.”

Harry sighed.

Jack sat down in the single chair and hastily scribbled out his note to Londaris in his broad blocky printing. When he was finished, he folded it and pushed it into a pocket of the guard uniform they had stolen from the laundry room they had passed. “All right, lead the way MacDuff.” He told Takitti.

“Who?”

“Show us the ventilation system.” Jack said in near exasperation.

“Hey, by chance have you seen this guy?” Harry asked Takitti, pulling out a tattered photo of the Trust operative.

“That’s Kodar. Used to hang out with Snrell before they executed him for… well I’m not sure what for, but they made us all go outside and watch. Buncha the women cheered.”

Teal’c nodded. “Good.” He said with a satisfied expression.

“You guys know why, don’t you?”

“Yup.” was all Jack would say on the matter and ushered Takitti out ahead of him. 

* * *

“Letting him go back to his room was a bad idea, Jack. He’s going to tell someone.” Harry argued.

“He will not.” Teal’c interjected. They were hunkered down in the maintenance room on the back of the facility. They would need to make their way to the offices prior to the beginning of the day but they had over an hour Earth time to do that and they were unlikely to be heard. 

“We don’t have time for this.” Jacob said as he got the last screw loose on the air return screen. “Everybody in.”

Teal’c who arguably had the best sense of hearing and direction led with Jacob in the back

They reached the vent near the office Takitti said their missing Trust flunkey was using.

“Don’t you think it’s a little weird the ventilation is so big and so easy to infiltrate?” Harry asked pointedly.

“Yes and I don’t care.” Jack told him. No one was expecting them to be stupid enough to come back. This trap wasn’t for them. It was for the staff to sneak out if things went south. There was an obviously easily jammed door at the entry to the office area.

Jacob gave them both a ‘would you shut up’ look. 

Jack bobbed his shoulders dismissively.

“The grates screw from the outside. At the end of the workday, just zat him in his chair. I’ll go back out and unscrew the cover, shove him in and screw it back on.”

Jack nodded. Not a bad idea really. Sometimes Jacob really pushed home where Sam got her ingenuity from. 

“Just don’t get caught. This place is a pain in the ass to escape from.” Jack grumbled at him. 

Jacob nodded and patted Jack’s shoulder reassuringly.

They all settled in to wait silently for their opening.

* * *

All four men were fairly bored by the end of the day. Their intended target putzed in his office off and on all day but was clearly settling in for a late night when Jack eased forward with a Zat while Jacob silently made his way down the air exchange duct. The fact that he even could confirmed Jack’s opinion that the large vents were escape routes. 

Jack carefully aimed the Zat as close to the grill as he could and fired on the man.

He let out a strangled little yelp then slumped in his chair on the desk. Jack and Harry sweated a bit while the door to the office stood open for anyone to walk in. 

Jacob showed up soon after and closed the office door. “Give me a minute or two.” He said quietly and started fiddling with the screws on the grate on his side. Once he had them done he tilted the man’s head back and pressed open his mouth. With a sharp pop he knocked out one of the man’s teeth with his multi-tool. “Cyanide.” he told Jack, holding up the tooth.

“What is this, a 1960s spy film?” Harry muttered.

Jack reached out and helped manhandle the Trust member through the grate then handed Jacob the letter to place on the man’s desk. The front was simply addressed “Londaris”.

Once they dragged him over the lip. Jacob started replacing the grate and screws. Once he was done he nonchalantly walked out of the office like he belonged there in his stolen guard uniform.

“Help me tie this idiot up.” Jack told Teal’c.

Teal’c nodded silently and pulled a roll of duct tape from one of his many pockets. 

“No rope?”

“I find duct tape far more versatile.” Teal’c told Jack and gave Harry a considering look.

Harry edged back out of the way and definitely out of Teal’c’s reach.

Jack snorted in amusement as he positioned the prone man so Teal’c had better access to restraining his upper legs. “All right, let's get out of here.” He told the other two men. They could meet Jacob further up the line.

They slowly made their way out of the ventilation shafts, carrying their bound and gagged charge. Jack doesn’t envy how the man’s shoulders will feel with Teal’c carrying him hooked from behind through his arms so his own hands are free. Jack and Harry each have a leg while Jacob now leads them out.

“How do we plan to get off this rock?” Jacob finally asks them. They had bummed a ride on shuttle earlier with what money they had left but now they would have to figure out how to get back to a working Gate without anyone noticing they had a hostage.

Jack looked at Harry.

Harry shrugged and Jack sighed. “Anyone got any ideas?” He asked them as they worked their way through an alley trying to stay out of the light.

A hovering van approached them and stopped. The passenger front door opened. “Perhaps we could be of assistance, gentlemen.” Said a smooth and very amused voice of a dark skinned man. The driver chuckled.

“Hi Londaris. Didja miss us?” Jack said cheerfully.

“You know this guy?” Jacob asked Jack.

“Yup. He’s pretty much the reason I’m not in jail for knocking up your daughter.” He grunted as he helped Teal’c load the bound man into the van.

“I really wish you wouldn't put it that way, Jack.” Jacob told him. Not wanting to think about his baby girl and her CO, a man he otherwise liked and respected doing that kind of thing ever.

Once the prisoner was secured and all four men were seated, Londaris closed the door. “So where are we headed this time?”

“Home.” Jack told him. “But you can drop us off at the Gate, we need to make a pit stop anyway.”

“Perhaps we should Gate directly home, O’Neill, and retrieve our belongings at a later time.”

“Something on your mind, T?”

“I dislike remaining in the company of Colonel Maybourne.”

“Ouch.” Harry said.

“Jack, the Trust is going to be after him now.” Jacob said thoughtfully.

Jack nodded. Jacob was probably right.

“The Tok’ra might have a few places he could hole up that he won’t be found. Why don’t I take him and meet up with you in a couple days?”

Jack thought about it for a bit. Harry was in some deep crap still at home too. “They gonna keep track of him?”

Jacob nodded. 

“All right. Fine.” Jack grumped. “Saves me the trouble of handing him over.” He didn’t actually want Harry to go back to jail, but that was where he was headed if he went home.

“So it’s back to Orbistus for you then?” Londaris asked them.

“Yah. Thanks, Londaris, how did you know we were here?”

“Unlike the system lords we are not paranoid about being watched. You showed up on the security camera live feed in Tueri’s office.” Londaris told them with a companionable laugh.

“D’oh.” Jack huffed under his breath.

“Did I not inform you that it was unlikely we were not being observed, O’Neill?” Teal’c reminded him.

“You don’t have to rub it in…”

“My observation was correct.”

Jack sighed.

Londaris chuckled. “Our cameras are very difficult to find, Jack. Don’t take it personally.” He told the other man who looked a bit put upon. “Why don’t you introduce me to your friends?” He said, tactfully changing the subject to a safer one.

Jack gave him a grateful look. “The slimy fellow is Harry.”

“Hi.” Harry said with a duck of his shoulders and a finger wiggle.

“The turkey is your former employee who you may or may not have met, but who is definitely a guy from Earth involved in specifically trying to steal a particular baby from your facility.” Jack sighs. “And that’s Sam’s dad.” He said, poking a thumb at Jacob.

Londaris broke out in a big grin, asked Jacob directly. “Is he as terrified of you as I am of my father-in-law?”

Jack swiped a hand over his face in resignation.

“Well, he’s a little old for her for starters.” Jacob told Londaris. “He’s also terrible at lying. I have no idea how he made it in Spec Ops all these years. And let's not get into his tastes in entertainment. Have you ever heard of the Simpsons?”

“Can't say that I have.”

“It’s a terrible cartoon about yellow people who all act like idiots all the time. The main character is a moron which is probably what he likes about the guy because he can feel smarter.” Jacob gave Jack a sly glance to see how green he’d gotten at this plethora of unsavory opinions about the father of his youngest grandchild. “But he seems to love my daughter so that’s a point in his favor.” He said, winking at Londaris, who let out a rolling belly laugh.

“Jack, I now understand your discomfort when we last met.” He said, still laughing. 

Jack sighed in resignation. 

Their prisoner groaned. 

Teal’c bopped him on the head.

* * *

“Thanks, Londaris. I really appreciate everything you’ve done.”

“Think nothing of it, Jack.” He smiled and took Jack’s proffered hand. Jacob and Harry had already left. “Just so you know, your father-in-law really likes you.”

“Yah, I know, he just likes giving me grief for his own entertainment. He does the same thing to Sam.”

Teal’c was quietly dialing Earth. Their prisoner sitting next to him on the ground. When the Gate whooshed to life he grabbed the man’s arm and hauled him up. “You once again have our gratitude, Administrator Londaris.”

Londaris nodded. “I’m still working on making our systems allies.”

“I appreciate it. Ah.. look, I’ve been promoted. The next time you see me I’ll probably have stars on my shoulders.” Jack and Londaris had spent most of the shuttle trip back to Orbistus discussion how their militaries worked and what they might offer each other technologically. 

Londaris grinned. “You are an asset to your people.”

“He is indeed.” Teal’c agreed. 

Jack grabbed the Trust member’s other arm and he and Teal’c frog marched him to the Gate. “See yah around.”

Londaris nodded. They would indeed.


	11. Chapter 11

“The cleaning crew works out of a storefront in North Bethesda. It’s a place called Gaithersburg on Washingtonian.” Sam was telling her team. “They send their uniforms to a laundry service. We’ll hit there and swipe three of them then break into the cleaning service and take out the crew that’s supposed to clean Kinsey’s office.”

Sam looked around the table to make sure everyone was with her so far.

“What are we going to do with the regular crew?”

“Zat ‘em and have Daniel babysit them while we toss his office.”

Gibbs nodded thoughtfully. It was a fairly solid plan so far. 

“Why am I always the babysitter?” Daniel whined.

“Because you don’t have the first clue how to find buried military data that never saw microfiche and Gibbs does.”

Gibbs gave Daniel a smug smile.

“Sam… I’m an archaeologist…”

Sam nodded. “Daniel, you get nervous undercover.” She finally admitted her reason to him.

“I don’t.”

“You do.”

“Don’t.”

“Do.” Sam said firmly.

Gibbs coughed. “Uh…. can we move on from this?” They didn’t have time for childish team dynamics right now. 

Sam blew her bangs out of her eyes while Daniel crossed his arms over his chest and shrugged.

“Good. Now then, do we need key cards?” Gibbs asked, knowing his people could get them some pretty quickly.

Sam shook her head. “Just employee IDs.”

“I’m on it.” He told her and started dialing his phone.

* * *

It took Jethro’s team twelve hours to dummy the three of them company IDs from their targeted company. Sam hacked into their computer system and tried to just get them scheduled but it was too small of a company for three new people to not be noticed nor take on a high security job like that so Sam fell back on her original plan and checked what time the cleaning crew for Kinsey’s main offices left the building. They would have to get into the service dock and hide in the van or run them off the road and bag the team then. Sam was still trying to figure out which way would work. “Gibbs?” she finally asked him.

“Carter,” He responded in kind which made her smile in amusement. 

“How are we going to get control of the cleaning van?”

Gibbs thought for a bit. She had a point. If the place would notice an extraneous team, it was going to notice a team getting a beat down or hijacked at the Gate. He pulled on his lip a bit. “Do you know any cops?”

Sam shook her head. That was Jack’s purview. She currently avoided cops of any kind. Cowardly but necessary. 

“Huh. Well, let me see if I have any contacts around here I can lean on.” He said to her and started dialing his office who had just dropped off their IDs.

DiNozzo sat at Gibbs’ desk and surveyed his domain. His currently devoid of people domain, since the rest of the team hadn’t returned yet from dropping off the ID’s Gibbs had requested earlier. He sat back in the chair, placed his hands on the desk, and wiggled his butt a little to be sure the seat fit him just perfect. He took a sip of coffee before placing it carefully on one side of the desk. He looked around one more time, nodded his head in satisfaction. He leaned back in the chair and plopped his feet on Gibbs’ desk, stretching his arms before linking his fingers and placing them behind his head. Yep, he had it made in the shade alright. When the phone rang a few seconds later he punched a button then answered, “NCIS, Very Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo. How may I help you?”

“Get your feet off my desk,” Gibbs said.

“Uh, Gibbs,” Tony spluttered as he jumped out of the chair and looked frantically around, then scrambled as he knocked his coffee on the floor. “Boss, I was just, uh… you know..,.., and…” He winced and rubbed the back of his head where he could feel the imaginary Gibbs’ slap. 

“DiNozzo, clean up the coffee later. Right now I need you to ….” Tony grabbed a pen and piece of paper and started writing. “Okay, Boss. I think I know just the man. Worked with him on a few cases before I left the Baltimore PD. I’ll run it down and call you with the name and contact. Thirty minutes tops.” Tony let out a breath when the line went dead.

Walking back to his own desk, he flipped through his contacts before picking up the phone and making a call. He spared a minute to look over at the coffee puddle by Gibbs’ desk. He hoped he had time to clean it up before anyone else came in. 

Gibbs flipped his cell shut. “Thirty minutes,” He said to the room. He stretched out on his back on one of the lumpy beds and closed his eyes, his hands resting on his chest. Daniel shook his head and looked at Sam, who shrugged. It was such a Jack thing to do. Sam turned her attention back to her laptop and Daniel buried his head in one of the few books he’d been able to stick in his carryon.

Exactly thirty minutes later, Gibbs sat up. He looked at his watch as he swung his legs to the floor. One minute later his cell rang. He flipped it open and held it to his ear without checking the number.

“You’re late,” he complained. Standing, he walked to the table and motioned Sam to pass him a pen and paper.

“Got it,” he said, scribbling on the paper. “Don’t throw your wet paper towels in my trash.” He listened for a second to the flustered man on the other end of the line, then closed the cell with a snap. The lopsided grin only lasted a second. DiNozzo was just too easy. 

He forced himself not to laugh as Sam craned her neck to try to decipher his scribbled note. She almost whimpered when he picked it up, tore it in pieces and threw the confetti in the trash. He told himself for the hundredth time he really shouldn’t mess with Jack’s team like that. It was more about the nanny though. She wasn’t cleared technically on a lot of this and yet… he felt there was more to her than she was letting on. He knew Jack would have thoroughly vetted anyone watching his kid though so it wasn’t a priority concern.

“We’re in business,” he said.

“Got a contact on the police force?” Sam inquired, kicking Daniel’s ankle under the table to get his attention. 

Gibbs nodded. “One with everything we need and willing to help.” Gibbs didn’t mention the last thing DiNozzo said. “Get the bad guy, Boss.” His team might not be part of a project like the SGC, or save the world twice a week like SG-1, but they’d done their share of saving the country and putting more than a few murderers and a few international terrorists away for good. He trusted them, depended on them the same way Jack trusted depended on his team, and, though he didn’t say the words, he was proud of the job they did.

* * *

An hour later, Gibbs’ phone rang again. He’d called the guy but he’d been out on patrol apparently. “Gibbs.” He listened for a moment. “Yah, uh huh. I’m going to hand you over to the lady in charge of this op.” He told the man on the other end. He handed the phone to Sam who took it and cradled it on her shoulder.

“Carter.” She said. The man on the other end of the line listened to her requirements and nodded as she listened. “Yah, it needs to look like a regular traffic stop.” She agreed. “Thanks.” Sam hung up. All right. We are go.”

By a quarter to twenty one hundred hours, they were all dressed in their temporarily borrowed uniforms. Sam nursed Gracie and kissed her head then handed her back to Lonnie. They were going in weaponless which made Sam uncomfortable but they didn’t have much choice. The uniforms had no place to hide a weapon effectively and the cleaning supplies other than the floor washer were kept on site so there was nothing but a rag bucket. 

“We could try wrapping a zat in the rags.” Daniel suggested.

“It’s probably going to clunk around.” Sam said with a frown.

“Rubber bands.” Daniel said.

Sam grinned. They had taken a couple off their bags of fruit from earlier. She grabbed a couple rags and wrapped the Zat in them then slid a rubber band over each end to secure them in place, leaving a flap she could easily swipe aside if she needed it. She examined her work, made a couple adjustments, and checked that she could get the zat into firing position with the rag on it.

Gibs eyed her work. Not bad. “Is there going to be an issue with the beam touching the fabric?”

Sam shrugged and raised her hands with a frown. She could field test it or take her chances. It might knock her out too but probably just give her a feedback zap that numbs her arm for a bit. If it was going to do that it was probably best if she didn’t field test it.

Gibbs just shook his head. She was clearly crazy and he deeply suspected this was what had attracted Jack to her in the first place. Well that and drop dead stunning, smart as hell, and able to beat his ass. Definitely Jack’s type.

Daniel looked at his watch. “We should get into position…”

Sam and Jethro nodded and they left the hotel room.

After they were gone, Lonnie sat down at the small table in the room and started playing solitaire while Gracie slept peacefully. She didn’t like being out in the open like this and sent a text to her employer saying so.

* * *

Fifteen minutes later, they were in position outside a local donut shop where a police car seemingly on random patrol had also set up a position to clock the drivers. With no body cams or in unit dash cams yet, it was easy to accuse the driver of a random infraction. It was often the way smaller towns made up budget shortfalls. Officer Stokes wasn’t that kind of cop but he’d had the misfortune to have a TO who was and had learned many a dirty trick he didn’t as a rule use on drivers. But when a buddy called about a favor to the military investigation of a dirty politician, one tended to look the other way and engage in all kinds of less than savory behavior. 

He knew one questionable traffic stop wasn’t going to make or break him morally. 

When the cleaning company van barreled past him going a solid ten over however, he felt very vindicated about this traffic stop. He’d even had his radar gun up for appearances so he’d clocked them too. Officer Anthony Stokes of the BMDPD rolled out and hit his lights as he maneuvered in behind the offending work van emblazoned with Gaithersburg - Office Pride. “Gotcha.” He muttered as he pulled the van over. 

Unnoticed by the cleaning crew at least, a late model beige sedan pulled into the parking lot the work van pulled into to get their ticket and parked.

While officer Tony took a stroll to the side of the van, Daniel grabbed the bucket and Sam one of the unwrapped Zats. Gibbs had petitioned for taking the workers out but Daniel had shook his head and told him he’d bet his hazard pay Sam was a better shot than him at any distance. This had given Jethro pause. Were there things Samantha Carter wasn’t good at? He just shrugged. It was their party after all.

While Tony Stokes asked the driver if he knew how fast he was going, team two of SG-1 worked its way discreetly around to the back of the van and popped the lock Sam had vandalized last night while the company was closed.

“How did you know which one to pick?” Gibbs asked under his breath.

“I didn’t,” Sam admitted.

Gibbs gave her a perplexed look. 

“I compromised all of the back door locks.”

Gibbs frowned and nodded his head in appreciation. That was as good of a solution as any other. 

They all returned their attention to Daniel swinging the door open to three very startled cleaning crew who Sam systematically shot in order of closeness to the breach, ending with the driver who Gibbs was already yanking out of the seat and shoving at Sam to restrain.

Tony finished writing up the citation and handed it to Daniel. “Ya’ll have a pleasant evening, folks, and you drive safe now.” He told Daniel, utterly ignoring the situation inside the van where Sam and Gibbs were zip tying the prisoners.

“We will, officer. So sorry to inconvenience you.” Daniel said sincerely.

“S’aright.” Tony said, tipping his hat and walking away.

After he drove off, Daniel turned in his seat. “Everyone secure?”

Sam gave him an amused smile. Gibbs just rolled his eyes. “All tied up.” Sam agreed.

“Well, let’s go pirate some documents then.” Daniel said with amusement and drove off into the night.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special thanks to my co-author MRKRZHRSE for helping me get this chapter right. I promise I've been pushing him to get back into the groove of writing military dramas.

Lonnie sat playing cards by herself while Gracie slept off a food coma from having just been nursed. She got the alert moments before the breach. Long enough. At least for her. 

She quickly grabbed the pillows and comforters off the beds and tossed them into the tub to make a nest as best as she could then gently moved Gracie, baby blankets and all, trying not to wake her, into the bathroom and put her into the tub then closed the locked door. It wouldn’t keep them long but the steel tub would protect her charge and the door would prevent her being pinned down by overwhelming forces and having Gracie ripped from her grasp. Damn him, Maybourne had been right. She owed that jerk fifty bucks. Lonnie, that was not her real name but it was the persona she’d adopted for this mission, would have sworn they would go after Sam, not wait until Gracie was alone with her seemingly harmless nanny. “Yah right. Harmless.” She said with a grim smile as she swept the room visually. 

The next text from her handler had more details. She had at least five tangos heading her way. Shit… 

First order of business, she yanked the floppy mattress to the bed closest to the bathroom up against the bathroom wall and braced it with the box spring. The other one she propped against it to make a blind corner she can fire from and leaving her a small gap she can reach the kitchen from. 

She then tossed her gym bag against the bathroom door. She’s used up seven precious minutes so far. 

She looked around for a moment then manhandled the bed frames to the door and angles them so they make a single fatal funnel exit point slightly away from the door The four chairs from the table she jams into the bed frames bottoms up with the cross bars of the beds supported by the chair bottoms, creating a minimalist version of an abatis that would do little more than slow them down but it would buy her time as a trip hazard. The table she propped against the wall by the kitchenette, blocking the view to the stove. With her few remaining moments, she pulled down the ironing board and turned on the iron and ran a pot of water and turned on the range to start it heating. What it lacked in style, her arrangement made up for in its ability to confuse the opposition. Her last action is to hit the lights, plunging the room into darkness, the curtains having already been drawn earlier by Sam when she left. 

Lonnie grabbed the carving knife from the kitchen drawer last and jammed it into the upturned mattress she was using as a wall.

As she positioned herself behind her barricade, she smiled darkly to herself. If this were a spy movie she’d be casually playing solitaire at the table when they breached the door and just as casually pick them off like a skeet shoot game on easy mode. Real life didn’t work by comic book physics though and real live Tangos were best taken out swiftly and without prejudice. 

She unzips her bag and pulls out her Beretta 9mm and checks the chamber and mag. The mag was full. She loaded one in the chamber and grabbed a spare mag out of the bag. She takes a deep breath and settles into her position, calling on her training during her time in special ops. 

A moment later, the door bursts open. A quick peek on her part shows her four men in all black standing two by two by the entry. Probably a trail that hasn’t entered yet so she waits for it.

“Shit!”

The first two make contact with her amateur abatis and have clearly barked their shins on it at least. 

She stands up, bringing her Beretta up and sights the closest. She double taps the two men in front left to right. As they fall to the floor, blood pooling under them, the two behind the now dead men dodge to the left and the right. The one to her right takes a shot in his torso and a second to the head. He crumbles to the floor like a rag doll.

The fifth man, who had stayed in the relative safety of the hall outside the room, evaluating his position, makes his presence known finally by firing several suppression rounds her way.

She dives for cover through the gap between the mattresses and positions herself behind the dining room table. She rolls to her side, leans out and fires four rounds towards the silhouette framing the doorway and is rewarded with a grunt and a crash as the body hits the bed frame and lands on top of his dead comrade.

Just then, however, a large hand grabbed her by the hair. The third man, having reached her and grabbed down to her hidey hole while she was distracted by the fifth tango. 

“Got you now, bitch.” He drags her up. She struggles while he forces her to her feet and his other hand catches her face with a thunderous clap as he slaps her hard across the cheek. His hand drags across her face, leaving her stunned by the force of the blow. Her head was ringing.

Dazed, she bounces off the wall of the kitchen. Seeing stars, she staggers and tries to clear her head. 

He watches her in disinterest. “Not going to matter now.” He tells her while she struggles to get her bearings. “The kid is going with me.” He tells her with a smug and decidedly unfriendly smirk. He shoves past her to the only location Gracie could possibly be at this point as there is only one door and they had eyes on it from the time Sam, Daniel and Jethro left.

She hears him cock his weapon. Her eyes shift to the left while her head is down. The pot on the stove is steaming and making definite boiling sounds. Pretending to crumple slightly, she feigns to the wall and grabs the handle of the boiling pot. In a single fluid motion, she throws it at his face. Water flies out into his face and onto his arm. 

He’d been tracking her motions as he tried to force the bathroom door and his gun was aimed down where her head was a moment before. Reflexively he squeezes the trigger as he screams in agony. 

The bullet tears into her upper thigh. She staggers slightly but takes advantage of the motion as it takes her to the hilt of the knife sticking out of the bed. She grabs it and comes out of her momentum behind the disoriented burned man. She pulls his head back with her free hand. “Not on my watch, asshole.” She jams the tip of the knife into the base of his skull and twists as she thrusts upward. The man goes instantly limp against her and slides to the floor. 

She weakly kicks the body away and slides down the wall.

She lays there staring off into the middle distance. Unable to push through the haze of blood loss and having had her bell rung nearly hard enough to knock her out. Dad always said she had a hard head she thinks with a snort of amusement. God my head hurts.

Two minutes later, her team arrives. There’s an efficient body check as her handler walks through the room. “You okay?” The lanky unassuming blond man wearing windbreaker and grey dress slacks asks her.

She nods jerkily. “Gracie is in the tub. Go check her. I’ll be fine.” She tells him.

Her handler nods and quickly jimmies the bathroom lock with a table knife he grabbed out of the drawer after realizing it was locked from the inside. Gracie is crying but otherwise okay. He picks her up and cuddles her, making gentle shushing noises as he rocks her soothingly against his chest. Lonnie shakes her head in amusement. Only Blakewood, she mused. He’d told her once he was the oldest of nine. 

“Should have sent you for the nanny job.” She jokes at him.

“I don’t like being shot at.” He said with a shrug.

“Well who does.” She quips and they share an amused smile.

Local PD start showing up and the EMS crew is hot on their heels. 

Blakewood spends several minutes explaining who he is to the cops. The surely short Lieutenant sent out to investigate shots fired at the local business class long stay hotel argues with him a bit until his credentials are called in and he’s grudgingly allowed to proceed. 

The EMTs clean her up, decided she’s not going to bleed out just yet, and bandage her thigh to stabilize it. One of them goes back to the bus to retrieve the stretcher they start rolling into the room for her.

“That won’t be necessary.” Blakewood said to the EMT tech that seemed to be in charge of the other medics.

“Sir, she’s gravely wounded. She needs medical attention.” 

As he speaks, a Blackhawk chopper lands in the field behind the hotel. Blakewood hands Gracie to one of the other team members. “Jimenez and Lucas will take you back to home base. I’ll see you after this mess is cleaned up.” He tells the woman known as Lonnie.

“Carter isn’t going to like coming back to a hotel room covered in blood and her daughter missing, sir.” Lonnie told him.

“I’ll handle it, Agent Canfield.” He said with an amused smile. He’d take Carter over O’Neill on any day for the next part. Carter you could reason with. O’Neill had a history of going off the rails when it involved kids and worse when it was his own. Blakewood shook his head as Canfield was helped out of the room, limping but under her own power.

“Now then.” He says to the EMT who was frowning at him for taking his patient. “I’m sure there are other runs?”

The other man threw his hands up in disgust and growled at a couple techs to grab their equipment. “Do you want me to call the coroner or are you just going to pretend the room isn’t full of dead people?”

Blakewood smiled. “I'm sure the local law enforcement will be happy to handle that aspect.” Blakewood said with a bland smile.

“I’ll need to question your agent.” The cop in question told him.

“Of course.” Blakewood said as if it were the most natural thing in the world, having a shoot out in a hotel room over a baby with apparently murder worthy genetics. He wasn’t privy to the details, only that the Trust wanted that baby very badly and was willing to go to great lengths to retrieve her. Preferably alive but apparently they were not averse to taking her dead either by the amount of bullet holes peppering the hotel room.

Blakewood absently turned off the stove and iron. Canfield had done a good job. Her cover was blown, of course, but the whole point was her protecting Major Carter and her child by not staying undercover indefinitely. She had, however, trashed a hotel room and most of the things in said room belonging to Major Carter, Dr. Jackson, and Agent Gibbs were a total loss now. Mostly due to dead people landing on things and spattering blood everywhere.

Hopefully, she hadn’t spent her deployments riding a desk or she was in for a rude awakening when she got back tonight from her little side quest that Hammond had been decidedly tight lipped about when he’d called for a location confirmation on this op.

The cops were milling around tagging things and taking photos of bullet holes. The EMTs had left. Now it was just wait for the cops to get done so they could bring in the meat wagons. Just another Thursday night in his world really. He’d gotten over the stench of blood, vomit, and other bodily releases with the sudden and unexpected advent of death a very long time ago. One of the cops must be a rookie. He was tossing his cookies in the kitchen sink. 

Blakewood just shook his head. Kids. He thought in bemusement. But even Canfield seemed young to him being twenty years her senior. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So as you might have noted... the other 2 stories were 12 chapters. 
> 
> This one isn't. More to come campers :D
> 
> Das Goat


	13. Chapter 13

Sam and Gibbs got out of the work van and let themselves into the office complex with their purloined keys. 

“So, where do you think they keep the archives?” Gibbs asked her as he put on a pair of cleaning gloves and Sam did the same.

Sam took the liberty to smile smugly. “Basement. Let’s get most of the work done so no one still working gets suspicious.”

“Good plan.” He said with a nod and pushed the cleaning cart to the elevator.

They worked the building top to bottom as per the cleaning plan laid out in the truck files. Following standard operating procedure to keep anyone from wondering what they were up to or notice that they weren’t the regular guys. One attorney did ask Gibbs where the regular guy was but he just replied vacation like he was envious and was then ignored.

An hour later, they had emptied all the trash and wiped down all the break rooms on the main floors. The basement wasn’t technically on the cleaning schedule but there was a bathroom and a couple conference rooms down there they could use as an excuse for being in the records. They had smiled sympathetic yet disinterestedly as the few various office drones still stuck at their desks after dark because their boss wouldn’t leave.

Gibbs whistled when he saw how big the records room was. “And none of this is on microfiche?” 

“Not a bit of it.” Sam agreed.

“So if we swipe the whole file...”

“Assuming he hasn’t made back up copies, why would he…?”

“He’s toast.” 

“Yup.” Sam agreed with a rather unprofessional level of glee at the idea.

“Having fun huh?” he asked her, an eyebrow raised.

“Oh yah.” Sam said with a feral smile. Nothing would make her happier than to take this jerk down a peg and neutralize Bauer ever coming at them again. Sam was not above revenge. In fact, she took a certain amount of pleasure in knowing someone bad got what they had coming to them. It was probably why she wasn’t a particularly practicing Catholic anymore.

Gibbs shook his head. He wasn’t strictly against a healthy desire for revenge but he had the sudden urge to never ever cross Sam Carter soon to be O’Neill. He had the same urges when it came to Jack who also was fond of evening the score from time to time. 

Sam thought for a moment. “Kinsey isn’t entirely stupid. It wouldn’t just be filed under Bauer’s name.” She looked around the room. 

“What about the name of the girl?” Gibbs asked.

Sam snapped her fingers. “Good thinking.” She started going through the rows and rows of metal briefing files until she got to the one she was looking for. When she opened the drawer though, the file wasn’t there. Sam frowned. Kinsey wasn't actually that clever. He wasn’t on to them or even if he was he wouldn’t know they thought to head here. He was probably expecting them at his home like last time. Starsky and Hutch were off in the wild blue yonder however and it was left to her to pull this off. 

Out of habit when she needed to do something shady Sam automatically asked herself what would Jack look for?

She quietly snapped her fingers and started carefully separating the files a few inches at a time until she found her target. A single file tucked into the bottom of the drawer in such a way as to mimic having fallen off its rail but had in fact been placed that way by design. 

“Gotcha, you son of a bitch.” Sam muttered as she pulled out the file.

“Is it the right thing?” Gibbs asked her quietly.

Sam opened it. A photo of the victim was near the top. When she looked through the file, her mouth fell open. Kinsey had a toxicology report and a rape kit in the file as well as a match for the semen. Bauer had ruffied the girl or Kinsey had. Bauer had raped her and when he panicked, Kinsey strangled her for him. Rather than face criminal charges for their misdeeds because both came from wealthy families, they had opted to hide the body instead. Bauer had clearly recognized Jack as the kid that witnessed his crime yet had chosen not to use that information before. Had Bauer found out Jack had been imbibing in more than just beer that night and opted to threaten him into silence? Sam wondered and suspected the only way to get answers was to talk to Jack. 

Gibbs let out a low whistle. “Team effort.” Was all he said as they removed the content of the file and stuffed some blank sheets of paper into it from off a table to make it look untouched. Sam then hid its contents in their cleaning bucket under the dirty rags. The bucket had a false bottom. Sam carefully put the file back exactly the way it had been and gently closed the drawer.

“Let’s finish the cleaning job so they don’t get suspicious and get out of here.” Gibbs suggested. Sam nodded.

They split the rest of the work and scribbled unreadable initials on the sign out log in the maintenance room before leaving.

Gibbs and Sam calmly strolled out of the building with their dirty cleaning rags as though they didn’t have a care in the world and got into the van. 

“Did you get it?” Daniel asked.

“We got it.” Sam said. Her voice calm in spite of her heart jumping around in her chest. It was over. Kinsey couldn’t do anything to them without exposing himself. She and Jack could go back to their lives more or less. With some changes obviously. 

“Where do you want to dump this rig?” Gibbs asked Sam.

“We should probably take it back to where we got it or at least close to it. None of them saw our faces to identify us. Kinsey is going to know we had a hand in it but be unable to prove we were involved.”

“I’ll call Harm when we get back to the hotel and let him know what we found out.”

“The brown hair and glasses were a nice touch.” Gibbs agreed about Sam’s disguise. Sam was wearing a dowdy looking wig and even dowdier looking black framed glasses that would have easily fooled an average office quality camera.

“So home then?” Daniel asked.

“Home.” Sam said with a satisfied sigh.

It had almost been too easy, Gibbs mused.


	14. Chapter 14

They ditched the van a few blocks from where the cop had pulled them over. Sam and Gibbs wiped down everything for prints and they left their unwilling participants bound in the back of the van. An anonymous tip about an abandoned work van would be called in to the police in about an hour. With luck the cleaning crew would come out of this with a story to tell and little else. Officially not one of them had left the base after all. At least not according to the log. 

Sam scrubbed at her eyes. She felt like she was missing something important but couldn’t put a finger on it. She was probably just worried about Jack and chalked it up to knowing that he’d witnessed a murder while under the influence of questionable substances as it was the 60s after all. Frankly, she’d be more shocked if he’d only been drinking beer. Jack wasn’t exactly a toe the line kind of guy. He’d not wanted to compromise her career knowing how hard she’d worked to get where she was but breaking other rules hadn’t been something he’d worried about even a little. 

Gibb’s phone buzzed in his pocket. He fished it out and flipped it open in one fluid motion. “Gibbs.” He said, his voice sharp with professionalism. “Got it.” He said, his eyes cutting to Sam for a split second. He closed the phone and dropped it into the center cup holder. “There’s been an incident. Sam.”

Sam looked at him. But if it was Jack they would have called her unless… “No…” It came out a moan of dread. 

“She’s fine… Gracie is fine, Sam. She’s safe.”

Sam’s heart which had stopped dead now pounded in her chest. “What happened?”

“The Trust went after her instead of you. Why?” Gibbs said, possibly a bit more sharply then he meant to but kidnapping a baby didn’t make much sense in this instance. Especially not the baby of people trained to murder you for doing so.

“Because she’s Jack’s,” Sam said hollowly.

“Okay… Why does that matter?” Gibbs pushed.

“Jack’s genetics are… unusual. They probably would have tried for Charlie if he were still alive.” Daniel interrupted.

Sam gave him a sharp look but the damage was done. It’s not like Gibbs didn’t know but neither had any idea how much Jack had opened up in those confidential sessions.

“Charlie?”

“Jack’s son with his first wife. He died several years ago in an accident and Daniel is probably right but they might want Gracie because she’s specifically the child of a former host with Jack’s genetics.” She pointed out to Daniel.

“Still struggling with the little green men thing.” Gibbs muttered.

“Grey.” Sam and Daniel said together equally absently.

“What?”

“Not important. I need to see my daughter.” Sam said in a clipped voice, a professional veneer glossing over her fear.

Gibbs nodded and sped up a little, getting them back to the hotel in record time.

It was still crawling with police and investigators when they pulled in.

“Ma’am, you can’t go in--” An officer tried to tell her as Sam shoved past the man.

“Where’s my daughter?” Sam demanded of the room in general, not caring about the evidence. Everything was covered in splattered blood anyway. Pools of it were drying on the floor where the Trust members had bleed out. The bodies were gone but it hardly mattered. Sam had seen her share of death. 

“Major Carter?” A tall thin blond man asked her.

“Yes?”

“If you would come with me, please.” He said in a solicitous tone.

“And you are?” She demanded.

“Agent Michael Blakewood. CIA. Your daughter is safe. We have her.”

“What about her caretaker?”

“Agent Canfield is injured but will survive.”

“Agent?” Sam said sharply.

“We thought it best if you were unaware that you had a security detail, ma’am. I apologize for the deception.”

“We?” Sam’s voice was not becoming less clipped.

“General Hammond as well as a CIA consultant. To my knowledge, Colonel O’Neill was unaware of the insertion. Though Colonel Maybourne is.”

“Of course he was.” Sam says with a weary sigh. 

“Ma’am, a Blackhawk will be here shortly to take you to base. Your daughter is being cared for.”

Daniel interrupted. “Gibbs and I will stay here and collect any of our stuff that’s salvageable.” 

“I need to call this in anyway.” Gibbs admitted.

Sam sighed. “All right. Let’s go, Agent Blakewood.” She told the CIA operative who looked like someone’s geeky dad.

Ten minutes later, the chopper touched down in the field again and Sam was loaded up and taken away.

“All right, Mike, what can you tell me about what happened here tonight.” Gibbs said to the other man.

Blakewood raised an eyebrow at being addressed informally but told Jethro the events of the evening after they had left to handle their information retrieval. 

* * *

Sam all but ran through the corridors of the private medical care facility the CIA had set up for injured operatives just outside of DC. From the street, it looked like nothing more than an old high rise but its defining feature was a helipad on the roof, away from prying eyes.

“Ma’am… please slow down.” The co-pilot of the Blackhawk said as she stalked down the hallway after the elevator opened. 

Sam favored the man with a baleful look and he gulped. Do not anger the Major, he decided and rushed to lead her to the room her child was assigned to. “In here, Ma’am.” He finally said and used a slide key to open the secured door. 

Sam pushed past him and found Lonnie sitting up in bed, Gracie snuggled against her chest sound asleep. Sam let out a pent up sigh of relief. “Thank you. You may go now.” She told the pilot, in no mood to have her orders questioned.

“Yes Ma’am.” He said, saluted her and closed the door behind him.

“She’s fine.” Lonnie said in a groggy voice. “Cover’s blown. M… sorry, Sam.”

Sam shook her head. “It’s all right. You kept her safe.” Sam said as she crossed the room and looked down at her sleeping daughter. Unable to resist, she stroked the soft down on her crown. “Thank you.”

“S… been an honor to serve…”

“Gave you the good stuff, huh?” Sam said as she toed a chair over to sit at the side of the medical bed. She all but flopped in it though as the adrenalin wore off.

“Fugger shot me. I scrambled his brains for it.” Lonnie said groggily.

Sam chuckled weakly. “Your handler said you'd be all right. How many did you take out?”

“Five. Screwed up… four got past me when five breached… Boiled his face.” She slurred sleepily.

“Get some rest, Agent Canfield.” She said softly. She owed this woman everything. Her daughter was safe. They hadn’t gone after her, but they had struck out at her daughter. Kinsey would pay for that. Lonnie, or whatever her real name was, had dozed off. Sam gently lifted Gracie off her chest and cuddled her against herself, desperate tears rolling down her cheeks. How am I supposed to keep you safe, Nugget? She asked herself, using Jack’s pet name for their daughter.


	15. Chapter 15

They flew back to Colorado on a military cargo run that night. Not much of their belongings were salvageable anyway and they had accomplished their mission. Lonnie returned with them in spite of her cover being blown and a new security detail installed as Gracie’s ‘nanny’ pro tem. 

Sam’s anxiety telegraphed to her infant daughter who fussed the entire flight. Lonnie offered to take her but Sam waved her off. “I never did actually get your real name you know, Agent Canfield.”

“Sorry, ma’am. It’s Claire.” The woman they had all known as Lonnie said contritely.

Sam just nodded. She needed to thank her but she knew Jack would be the one who did that. Sam bit her lower lip with worry but no one was paying any actual attention to her except Claire.

One of the SF’s wheeled Claire through the SGC entry points until they reached the guest quarters on 26. “Sorry Clair, I have to drop you and Gracie off here. There’s still baby supplies in the guest quarters they had Colonel O’Neill confined in and I’ll have someone bring you a clean change of clothing too.” Sam told her.

Clair sighed. “I’m sorry Sam. I genuinely thought the target was you.”

“It’s all right.” Sam told her, handing Gracie to the other woman after the SF wheeled her into the guest room. “They should have changed the sheets if you want a nap. I need to go report in. I’m sure General Hammond will want to debrief you once you are settled. I need to go talk to Harm.” She said and walked out of the room.

Sam found Gibbs already briefing Harm on the latest incident. 

“Were you in on it too?” Sam asked Harm.

“I knew they had assigned you security. That’s SOP for this kind of thing now. Maybourne was the one that came up with inserting a bodyguard as the nanny. They would have switched out anyone you picked for a plant by the way.”

“Great.” Sam says sarcastically to him. 

Harm gives her a sharp look.

“I’m not complaining. She saved Gracie’s life. But you could have told me.”

“We weren’t sure who their informant was. Neither you nor Jack knew about the insertion for that reason. You can’t slip up if you don’t know. Maybourne told him after they were away.” Harm told her.

Sam sighed. She got it… it was just…

“Unscheduled wormhole activation.” Walter’s voice cut into their conversation.

Sam went immediately into work mode and headed for the Gate room at a jog, leaving Harm behind.

“What have we got, son?” Hammond asked Walter.

“It’s SG-1 sir.” He said with a relieved smile.

“Well, what are you waiting for? Open the iris.”

“Yes sir.” Harriman said and busily coded the open sequence. A moment later a very tired looking Jack walked through with Teal’c and the last of their prisoners. 

“Oh, hey Carter. Where yah been?” He said with a tired grin. His smile fell when he noted her anxious expression. “Carter?”

Sam just shook her head though.

“Colonel O’Neill, you appear to be missing a couple members of your party.” George cut in.

“Yah… about that… the Tok’ra apparently wanted to have a little chat with Harry.”

“They do know he’s still under arrest here right?”

“Yah, Dad didn’t seem to care about that part much.” Jack admitted.

Hammond sighed. “Have what’s left of your team checked out. Briefing in an hour. I assume you will be ready then as well Major?”

“Yes sir.” Sam told him. She was wearing civvies but that was easily corrected.

Hammond nodded and waved them all out of the Gate room.

The SF’s grabbed the Trust operative from Teal’c rather ungently and pulled his resisting form out as well.

Jack walked over to Sam. “Carter?”

Sam shook her head and walked out of the room, refusing to meet his eyes.

Jack half jogged half limped after her. “Meet me in my office after my physical. I need to grab some… stuff.”

“Yes sir.” She said, her voice was hollow with unshed grief.

Jack sighed. He knew he wasn’t going to get her to talk to him out here in the hallway so he continued on to the elevator then held it for her until she joined him with a soft sigh. He watched her out of the corner of his eyes, concerned that whatever it was she was too upset to just tell him. “Dad was mad at the council but not us.” He told her finally, trying to break the ice.

“He wasn’t?” She asked him, surprised enough to comment finally.

Jack shook his head. “He was a little mad at me, but he understood why we handled it the way we did. He knows sometimes the only way to protect the people you love is to break the rules.” He smiled a little at her but his expression turned to concern when her face crumpled. “C’mere.” He muttered before grabbing her into a tight hug. “Sam… talk to me.” He told her gently.

Sam just shook her head though, sniffled and drew away. “After your physical sir.” She said in a shaky voice and forced herself to stand at attention as the elevator doors slid open.

Jack gave her a hard look, sighed and left. “My office.” He called over his shoulder.

“Yes sir.” Sam said firmly but Jack recognized her tone more than anyone else. She needed much more than a hug.

Half an hour later she was in his office as ordered. The CMO told him he needed surgery on his knee which he’d been expecting but had left him in a sour mood. “All right. Spill it.” He grumped at her while he dug through the contents of one of his desk drawers.

That was all it took for Sam to finally burst into tears and plop into a chair. “Jack.. I’m a terrible mother. Gracie was almost kidnapped because I left her alone with just a nanny while I went looking for clues about a murder.”

He looked over at her sharply. Her face was in her hands and she had laid her elbows on his desk. “How is that your fault?” He asked her simply.

“Jack, your daughter could have been killed and it’s my fault!”

Jack just shook his head though. “No. It’s Kinsey’s fault and when I tell him the dirt I have on him he’s going to leave me alone finally.” Jack said with venom. “He’s going to leave all of us alone this time.”

“But you’re the person he was after anyway.”

“Yah… I kind of figured.”

She shook her head hard. “No, Jack… you were the key all along. The witness was you.”

“What?”

“He’s been after you all this time because you saw him help Bauer bury that girl.”

Jack stilled from his search of his desk. “That was him?!” He said in alarm.

“You didn’t know?”

“No, I didn’t know. I got the hell out of there as fast as I could transfer away. Lost an assload of credit hours for it too, but it was better than waiting around to see if I was next.”

“The guy we talked to said he saw you had gotten a letter and acted spooked after.”

Jack nodded slowly. “He sent me a piece of my uniform I’d ripped off when I was running back to my buddy’s truck.” He said softly. “It s pretty clear what the message was.”

Sam nodded slowly. He had just been a young kid. Like her, he’d graduated early so he could join the military at seventeen. Of course being told by a judge he could volunteer or go to jail hadn’t helped matters. A thought occurred to her. “When did Harry tell you?”

“When I freaked out the night I realized Gracie was their real target.”

Sam sighed heavily. “What have we done, Jack? She's never going to be safe from them.”

Jack drew her up out of the chair and wrapped her into his arms before touching his head into her shoulder. “We don’t have to slay the dragon, Sam, just poke its eyes out.” he explained.

“What if it doesn’t work?”

“It has to, Sam. It has to.” His arms tightened around her.

* * *

“So this whole thing is about an almost thirty year old murder case?” Hammond asked them.

“Yes sir.” Sam said. 

“Bauer made it look like he was punishing Jack to get to Sam, Sir, but in reality he was always the target. With him put away for several years, he didn’t have to worry about Jack finally remembering the events of that night.” Harm said.

“Not that my testimony would have been worth snot, sir. Everyone involved that would remember would also remember how intoxicated I was and that not everything I was on was technically legal… sir.” Jack coughed a little and had the decency to look embarrassed about his behavior in his late teens. “It, um, it was the sixties, sir.” He mumbled.

“I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that last part, Colonel.” Hammond told him with a stern look but there was amusement in his eyes. 

“Yes sir.” Jack said crisply.

“All right. I’ll handle the fall out for this situation… Or rather Sergeant Gibbs will.” Hammond said decisively. 

“You don’t want him prosecuted, sir?”

“I do, Commander Rabb, but prosecuting Kinsey will be much more problematic. I’m arranging a meeting with President Hayes this week. I want Sergeant Gibbs’ people in position before I attend that meeting.”

“Wire tapping, that sort of thing?” Gibbs asked.

“Whatever you think is necessary to get the evidence that Kinsey attempted to warn him.” Hammond agreed.

“I had looked forward to General Bauer being arrested on base.” Teal’c complained.

“You and me both, big guy.” Jack said.

“We’ll all watch it on the evening news, son.” Hammond said with a warm smile. “Far away from his ability to cause us any trouble here.”

Sam grinned. “I have a couple reporter friends from my DC days I could tip off, sir.” She suggested.

“I find this solution agreeable.” Teal’c said with amusement.

“No one deserves public humiliation more than that shady no good rat bastard.” Jack agreed.

“Then it’s decided.” Hammond said and dismissed them.

As they filed out Jack pulled out his cell phone and sighed. “Carter, turn your phone back on.”

“Sir?”

“Cassie is blowing mine up with texts because you won’t answer her.”

Sam winced and grimaced in embarrassment

“She’s just going to stalk you until you give her answers, Sam.” He reminded her.

“Yah… she gets that from Janet you know.”

Jack laughed. “Yah she does.” He got up and walked out of the briefing room whistling Frankie Valli’s ‘Your Just Too Good To Be True’. 

Sam blushed bright red at Hammond’s amused smile. “Excuse me, sir.” She said and fled the room.

* * *

“Cass, I’m not ignoring you…. I know… I know… Cass! I KNOW.” Sam tried to get a word in edgewise but Cassie was on a roll and much like her adopted mom there was no stopping that train until she was finished. Sam sighed. “All right Cass. I promise…. yes I mean it this time…. yes… no… The pink ones…”

“Unscheduled wormhole activation.” Walter’s voice intoned over the general PA.

“Cass, I have to go.” She hung up abruptly and set her phone down to head to the Gate room.

Moments later, Jacob Carter walked through the Gate alone.

“Did you lose something, Jacob?” Hammond asked him.

Jacob pretended to look around in confusion. “Nope.” He told his oldest friend. “Hi kids. Did you miss me? Where’s my baby granddaughter?” He asked Sam and Jack who were standing together but professionally distantly so.


	16. Chapter 16

Jacob had opted to stay at Sam’s house so Sam and Jack could have some privacy. The last thing he’d have wanted when he and Debbie were first married was his father-in-law staring over his shoulder.

Some time before oh seven hundred, Jacob was awoken by an insistent knocking at the front door. “Who the hell?” He wondered. He pulled on a shirt that had probably been Jack’s and shambled to the door in a bath robe and sleep pants. “What?” He demanded of the tall blond man in front of him.

“Where’s Sam?” The man demanded, trying to edge his way around Jacob.

“Who wants to know?” Jacob demanded in an unfriendly tone.

“Her boyfriend!”

“Oh… you’re that guy. She’s fine.”

“I want to see her.” The man said firmly, trying to intimidate Jacob by pulling himself to his full height.

Jacob looked up at the man with a baleful frown. “She’s not here.” He said, his voice a clear warning the other man didn’t seem to grasp onto.

“Well, where is she then?”

“At her fiancé’s house, I imagine. Unless they went to breakfast but that doesn’t really sound like him now that I think about it. He’d probably make her breakfast and then serve her in bed.” Jacob mused, now clearly amused by this situation.

“Fiancé?!” The blond man sputtered in shock.

“A lot’s happened recently.” Jacob said blandly, ignoring Selmak laughing in his head.

“When the hell did she get a fiancé?! I thought I meant something to her!”

Jacob shrugged. “She never mentioned you to me.” 

_“You’re terrible. She did too.”_ Selmak told him, laughing even harder.

“Just who exactly are you anyway?” The blond man finally thought to ask him.

“Oh… just her father… who works with her fiancé.” He said, still using a bland tone as he leaned on the door jamb in disinterest at this man.

“You’re General Carter?” he asked, eyes going wide.

“That’s what they keep telling me.”

 _“Stop it.”_ Selmak snickered.

 _“I’ve never been so glad Sam figured out she had better options in my life. What in the hell did she see in this idiot?”_ He silently asked Selmak.

 _“Most likely that Jack was out of her reach, dear.”_ She reminded him.

 _“Yah right, like he wouldn’t have retired in a hot second if she’d told him to.”_ He groused.

“You need to tell her I still want to be with her. She’s making a terrible mistake.” Pete insisted.

“Sure. I’ll get right on that.” He said laconically and firmly shut the door in Pete’s face.

Pete stood there a few moments dumbfounded then went to his car.

Jack groaned when a phone rang from somewhere on the floor. He fumbled around with his hand for a moment before finding it and hit answer. “O’Neill.” He mumbled.

“Jack... tell your soon to be wife to quit turning off her phone.” Jacob barked at his soon to be son-in-law

“Sorry dad.” He said, swiping at his face. Sam was still thankfully asleep. They had gotten home last night, a security detail in tow, put Nugget to bed with an AF physically in her room to stand guard then retired to bed to slowly and quietly in deference to their guest’s feelings made each other come unglued. “Her ex called a couple times last night and it was interrupting things.” 

“Well, that explains why he showed up here at oh six hundred this morning.” Jacob agreed.

“He what?” Jack demanded.

“Yah. Apparently he wants her to know she’s making a huge mistake marrying you.” Jacob said in amusement.

“Well yah probably.” Jack agreed.

Jacob chuckled. “Stay home today if you can get her to or only go to the mountain. If he shows up, call me and I’ll sick some very large Jaffa on him.”

Jack grinned darkly. “Are you suggesting I can’t intimidate one measly idiot cop?”

Jacob laughed. “Nope. I just want to watch Teal’c scare him until he craps himself.” Jacob admitted.

“Okay yah that would be worth watching.” Jack agreed.

“Tell my princess I love her and I’ll be by later tonight for dinner with you three and Gracie’s bodyguard.”

“Yes sir, Sir.”

“Stop that.” Jacob admonished him.

* * *

“Well Carter, how’s this working out for you so far?” Jack asked Sam while they danced slowly to some random schmaltzy pop song.

Sam chuckled. “At least Pete didn’t storm the wedding venue.”

Jack hummed in agreement. Teal’c having given him the stink eye when he showed up at their afternoon out as a team plus Gracie and Jacob lunch at the local diner. Sam had not told the man Gracie was hers as Cassie was with them also. It had been a bit of a celebration after watching the breaking news that one Henry Bauer had been arrested in the murder of a young co-ed back in the 1960’s. “I don’t think Dad would have put up with him showing up again.”

“Dad or Selmak?” Sam said, chuckling.

“Fair point.” He agreed, dipping her gently.

“May I break in?” Jacob said, coming up behind Jack.

“Absolutely, Dad.” Jack said and handed Sam off to her dad before heading to the bar for a drink then remembering he was trying to be fair to Sam who wasn’t allowed to while she nursed an infant and grabbed one of Teal’c’s fancy ginger ales instead. 

“President Hayes would like to see us after you get back from your honeymoon.” Hammond told him while casually drinking a beer. 

“Oh?” Jack asked mildly.

“Do you think Sam would like to be the one to pin your General stars on?” Hammond asked him in the same casual tone.

Jack gave him a surprised look.

“Think Jacob will have time to come too?”

Jack chuckled and shook his head. “Sir, you may as well invite Daniel and Teal’c.”

“Jack, in exactly two weeks you’ll be a General. Could you bring yourself to call me George?”

Jack smiled ruefully. “Right about the time Sam stops calling me Sir on accident… Sir.”

George laughed. “Practice in a mirror. That’s what Sam did as a little girl when she wanted to talk her dad into something.”

“Remind me to get more dirt about her as a kid later Sir.” Jack said, pointing at Hammond and grinning.

“Make friends with Mark. He’ll tell you anything you want to know after a couple beers.”

“I will keep that in mind.” Jack said with a grin.

“Congratulations son.” George said, patting Jack on the arm affectionately.

“Thank you… George.”

Hammond grinned. “Hold my beer. It’s my turn to dance with your wife.” He said and passed Jack the nearly untouched cold beer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well campers, it's the end of the line for Shards of Glass. I hope everyone enjoyed it. If you want to keep up on my day to day shenanigan's read the author's notes in FFN. Some of them are pretty funny. Love you all! Especially my writing group, Ginger, Julia, Suz, Meg, Annie and Pap in no particular order.


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